Leaders Love to Learn

​It is true that leaders are readers.  As Taleb says, only the autodidacts are free.  But it is deeper than that.  A real leader learns from experience.  They notice that less than 20% of performance ratings have anything to do with actual performance.  They might notice that close to 95% of performance rating systems are dismal failures.  They notice, they learn and they take action.  The leader refuses to keep doing the same thing and expecting to get a different result.

Leaders Love Transparency

​If you don't know what you are getting into, there may be a "gotcha" somewhere down the line.  Great leaders eliminate the fine print, literally and metaphorically.  They treat others with respect.  They love transparency.  You know what they stand for and their word is truly their bond.  This is how the most successful businesses operate and this is where the future of leadership is headed.

Leaders Love to Rejuvenate

​The category of rejuvenation is huge.  Without it, we simply are not very effective.  Leaders take their rejuvenation needs seriously.  They get enough sleep, they get silent time and they may read something inspirational first thing in the morning.  They may also schedule a "do nothing day" periodically as our friend Ralph White advises.

Leaders Love to Laugh

Too serious? Laughter is one of the highest things on the planet. There is power in an environment filled with laughter and it is a close cousin of love.

Numerous studies have confirmed that lots of laughter each day is what really keeps the doctor away. The book Anatomy of an Illness: As Perceived by the Patient (Twentieth Anniversary Edition) by Dr. Norman Cousins tells the story of how he recovered from a life threatening illness by applying laughter therapy. He literally watched his favorite funny movies every day for months until his illness disappeared.

Dr. Madan Kataria from India pioneered a practice known as laughter yoga. Every morning, people gather to laugh for 20 minutes (without movies). His book the Inner Spirit of Laughter- 5 Secrets from The Laughing Guru tells the story of this amazing technique.

How can you lighten up your team? How can you have more fun while delivering over the top service?

Leaders Love Collisions

​Collisions are chance meetings where two or more people come together and something meaningful happens.  Leaders love collisions.  They are out and about creating them daily.  Leaders love serendipity too!

Leaders Love Reality

Real leaders run a series of small experiments.  They look at the results.  They adjust or even scrap the idea based upon evidence and feedback from others.  Leaders love reality.  Many non-leaders roll-out huge sweeping changes without any regard as to how it will impact their stakeholders. 

Leaders Love to Close Gaps

​Generally, there is a gap between where you are and where you want to be.  It might be the additional 20lbs.  It might be an additional sale.  It might be that extra step needed to get a project completed.  Whatever it is, the job of the leader (you) is to recognize the gap and then work to close it.  Leaders love to close gaps.  This is actually where the fun shows up.

Leaders Love Pranks

One of my personal favorite leaders of all time (this includes statesmen, business, military and spiritual) is Herb Kelleher, co-founder of Southwest Airlines. He once said that the “business of business is people.” This was not a mere platitude written by a speech writer. This was a direct reflection of his core values. It informed everything he did, including the way he treated every employee of the company.

So, how do pranks come into this? 

It turns out that Herb Kelleher (and many other top leaders) loved to play pranks. They are the kind of pranks that make everyone laugh and causes people years later to write about it. Herb Kelleher was famous for:

• Occasionally hiding in the overhead luggage bins on planes and then jumping out mid-flight to the surprise and delight of all the passengers (and crew). 
• When challenged on a trademark issue, he challenged his "opponent" to an arm wrestling match. 
• During the annual BBQ bash, he would show up on a Harley wearing a costume. 
• He would appear in airports dressed in a costume to greet passengers as they boarded.

These are things that can only be pulled off by a leader. Someone who loves the employees, loves the customers, loves what he is doing in the world. More often than not, this results in a lot of love coming back towards the leader and the business itself.

Are you free to make customers smile and even laugh? Does your organization exercise the freedom of delighting the stakeholders?

Being v. Doing

Saying Thank You

Part of thanksgiving is feeling gratitude. It is about being grateful for what we have. Focusing on that is a game changer. For the readers of this blog, we have a lot to be grateful for (for starters, you have eyesight and are able to read, you have a computer, electricity, and some form of shelter, you are on the path of growth and development, etc.).

Yet. There is another side to Thanksgiving. That is saying 'thank you' to those who have specifically contributed in a positive way to our lives. It could be something small or it could be big. Either way, we have some obligation to recognize the other person. To say thank you. It is amazing how few people actually do this.

Let's start a trend and begin appreciating those who contribute to the quality of our lives with a heartfelt thank you (throughout the next 12 months). Other people will appreciate the recognition and we will feel good at the same time.

If you are in a leadership role, consider adding this practice to your performance objectives for the coming year. It is a kaizen practice (something small that will have a huge impact).  You will thank me later.

The Conscious Leader Focuses on Benefits

The conscious leader focuses on benefits, not features. Real benefits, not marketing fluff. Tangible results that benefit all stakeholders (not just one or two).

Whenever we are creating (or redesigning) something, be it a business, a product or a service, it makes sense to ask the question: “what are the key benefits that each stakeholder seeks?”  Then, do your best to make that happen.

How Improv Can Make You More Antifragile

Carl Jung, the great Swiss psychologist (a contemporary of Freud) coined the term synchronicity. This term is about “meaningful coincidences.” They are things that show up in our lives that are well beyond the probabilities of random chance. For instance, as was the case with Jung, a patient mentions a dream with a scarab and at that same moment, a real scarab comes into the room through an open window.

For me, I try to stay awake to synchronicities. If three or more show up in rapid succession, I sit up and take notice. I take action. Thus, this blog post is a direct result of synchronicity.

Enterprise Architecture Antifragility Webinar 2015-08-26 Part 2 (Audio Excerpts)

This is a continuation of the Enterprise Architecture Antifragility Webinar we did with Si Alhir and Barry Bettman. We had an amazing discussion with our group of distinguished panelists:

• Tom Graves, Principal Consultant
• Daniel Horton, Sr. IT Manager
• Jack Hilty, Strategic Enterprise/Business Architect

Even if you are not an IT professional, there are some golden nuggets here! The discussion is all about Antifragility and how to apply it in your life and work. 

For Part 1 of the webinar click here.

Enterprise Architecture Antifragility Webinar 2015-08-26 Part 1 (Aduio Excerpts)

Yesterday, we joined Si Alhir and Barry Bettman for the Enterprise Architecture Antifragility Webinar. We had an amazing discussion with our group of distinguished panelists:

• Tom Graves, Principal Consultant
• Daniel Horton, Sr. IT Manager
• Jack Hilty, Strategic Enterprise/Business Architect

As we mentioned yesterday, even if you are not an IT professional, there will be some interesting insights to be gleaned from this discussion. We should now say, more golden nuggets! The discussion is all about Antifragility and how to apply it in your life and work.

We will post Part 2 of the audio excerpts tomorrow.

Conscious Leaders and Leadership

One of the hallmarks of a conscious business is that it is led by conscious leaders. As we mentioned on a recent coaching call, conscious leaders are not the “in your face” tyrants that are so common in many businesses these days. Typically, that comes from those who have watched the movie Patton but never actually wore the uniform.

The conscious leader is more like a wise mentor or coach. They practice the art of servant leadership. They are dedicated to the organization’s higher purpose and aligned on the core values. They are typically humble and self-effacing. They understand that they are part of something much bigger than themselves and are grateful to be a part of it.

This is one of the “secrets” of the best companies on the planet. They see that leadership is key. They know that no one is any better than anyone else (although some may have more responsibility).

Moving Out of the Ruts

It is easy to get stuck in a rut. It happens. We are going about our business and we realize we are doing something (maybe a lot of things) that no longer make sense. We take the same route to work. We eat the same foods week after week. We complain about our lot in life (a lot). The good news is, we can break out of this rut at any moment. We can vary our routine to get unstuck. Let’s find a new way to move forward today!

Inventing the Future You Desire

Although it does not always feel like it, we do have the power to transcend our conditioning and make real choices. If things seem fuzzy, we can make them clear. If we don’t know which way to turn, we can clarify our values and let them inform our decision making process. 

It is up to each of us to invent the future we wish to see in the world (providing we are not doing damage to anyone else). Alan Kay said, ”the best way to predict the future is to invent it.” How true. How true. Let’s get started now.