Labor and Leadership

As I sit here this morning and gather my thoughts, I am tired. I am feeling my age. And I am feeling the effects of the last several months. It was not full of physical labor. My work does not require the kind of heavy lifting and strenuous physical activity that many folks experience in their jobs. But, I have labored nonetheless.

In the time since my last article, I have had significant changes and lots of added responsibility at work. We have sold our old house and bought a new house and moved into a house twice the size of the old one. And I have continued to try to market the book that launched last Fall.

And so it goes. Nothing gets done without some kind of labor. So it is in that context that I want to consider whether leadership is easy, or hard, and if it requires a little labor in order to be successful.

Easy Leadership

If “easy leadership” exists, it exists in the higher echelons of an organization. It is at those levels that there are resources available to help you as a leader. There are resources like budgets and coaches and dedicated followers who receive either satisfaction or compensation based upon the success of the leader. That kind of environment would make leadership at least easier than trying to lead in many other environments where there is conflict and little or no resources to support the leader and the organization.

Hard Leadership

The last sentence of the paragraph above sort of defines “hard leadership.” Leadership is hard in an environment where there is open conflict between the leader and followers and even when there is open conflict among the followers. Leadership is hard when the challenges that an organization faces are sucking the life and energy out of the team. Leadership is hard when there are no resources for even the basic tools that are needed to achieve a goal.

Labor and Leadership

We Need to Accurately Assess Our Abilities

Although this may not seem to fall under the category of “labor,” it is nonetheless one of the hardest tasks we undertake as a leader. Continue reading “Labor and Leadership”

November 23, 2017

Leadership Soup

I was trying to come up with something memorable and appropriate to say on this Thanksgiving Day of 2017. BrainyQuote.com had serious quotes, funny quotes, thought-provoking quotes, and more than one guilt-inducing quotes. But, then, I came across this little gem.

What a marvelous resource soup is for the thrifty cook – it solves the ham-bone and lamb-bone problems, the everlasting Thanksgiving turkey, the extra vegetables.

Julia Child

Are you kidding me? Is that the best you have for today?

Yes, that is the best that I have for today. Don’t judge it too quickly. I have had the pleasure of sitting at the tables of some of the finest cooks on the planet. My paternal grandmother was an amazing pie and bread baker and all around farmhouse cook. She didn’t really believe that we ever went to the moon. But, man, could she cook!?!

I don’t think she ever used a recipe. It wouldn’t have done any good because living during the great depression, you never really knew for sure what you would have to make a meal out of. Freshly baked loaves of bread and soups were a staple. You just never knew what kind of soup it would be. Sometimes there would be corn, sometimes there would be a few potatoes, and sometimes there was more water than anything. But, one thing was certain. Nothing was wasted.

Are you ready for the Thanksgiving angle on the nature of this soup quote?

Continue reading “Leadership Soup”

July 3, 2017

Waiting on the “Word”

As I arrived at the office today, parking spaces were plentiful. You could even find one close to the elevators in the parking garage. That can only mean one thing — Today is the day before a national holiday and many of the folks that are actually in the office today are just waiting on the “word.”

What “Word”?

We are waiting on the word “leave” from senior management that will say something like this: “Unless business reasons would make it otherwise imprudent, feel free to leave early this afternoon and begin to enjoy the July 4th holiday.” Those are the words everyone is waiting to hear. Days like today are the kinds of days that, unless you have something specific planned or are going to be out of town on vacation, it just doesn’t make sense to take the day off as a vacation today since it will be a short day anyway. Plus, you can be really productive in the time that you are there because there are only a handful of folks here and there are very few meetings that show up on your calendar. So, it is really a good day to get stuff done and get caught up on email or other administrative tasks that have slipped to the back burner lately. Like many others, I am just waiting for the word to come from our leader and I will exit with all due haste.

What is the Leadership Lesson here?

The leadership lesson is that from time to time we need to be asking ourselves about what message our followers may be waiting for. We need to ask ourself this question: “What ‘words’ are our followers waiting to hear from us?” Continue reading “Waiting on the “Word””

December 29, 2016

The In Between Week

The week between Christmas Day and New Year’s Day is an interesting week. It begins with joy and excitement on Christmas morning. It has times of great peace and contentment as we enjoy the presence of loved ones in our lives. There are times of great frustration when our kids tell us they are “bored” two days after Christmas!

There are times of reflection as we approach January 1st and the start of a new year. What will it look like? What opportunities or challenges will it bring? We also take some time this week to look back at the year that is about to close.

What Does a Family Leader Do This Week?

Continue reading “The In Between Week”

December 19, 2016

Leadership Can Be Messy

How many of you took a photograph of the kids all in the pile of torn paper, ribbons, and bows after all of the presents had been unwrapped on Christmas morning?

Oh, wait, you are one of those neat freaks who cleans up the wrapping as you go along? Well, read on anyway. It may have some entertainment value for you. If you are like most folks who have a giant mess in the middle of the floor after unwrapping presents, read on. There is an interesting leadership lesson to be learned.

Christmas morning can be a messy process

Continue reading “Leadership Can Be Messy”

November 24, 2016

Thanksgiving and Football

My thoughts today run from family to football and back again. I hope that you are having a great day today and that it is filled with family, food, and fellowship.

Thanksgiving has been known for many traditions. Not the least of which, unfortunately, may be that there is football on Thanksgiving. The Dallas Cowboys have played on Thanksgiving Day since 1966 and that my friend is a tradition.

I grew up and became a Steelers fan in my teen years. They were awesome in the 1970s. I tried to be a Patriots fan in the early 80s. I was a Falcons fan during our time in Atlanta. And when we moved to the DC area, I became a Redskins fan. Those Dallas Cowboys weren’t bad either. Even the most ardent Redskin fan would have to admit that. But one of the best thing to be said of the Cowboys for about 29 years in a row was their coach – Tom Landry.

Leadership is getting someone to do what they don’t want to do to achieve what they want to achieve. – Tom Landry

There have been some amazing coaches in pro football, Vince Lombardi, Bill Walsh, Don Shula, Chuck Knoll, Joe Gibbs, and Tony Dungy are only a few of the great coaches that have walked the chalk on the sidelines on cold Sunday afternoons. But, beyond their ability to motivate and draw up the Xs and Os, consider for a moment one of the key tasks of the football coach as the leader of the team. Continue reading “Thanksgiving and Football”

January 1, 2016

Leaders and Resolutions

Tis the season for many things. Not the least of which is making New Year’s Resolutions. Each of us should consider making some resolutions. And as leaders, here are a few that I think you should consider putting on your list.

Resolve This Year To Be A Better Leader — This one is exceedingly obvious. Yet it is surprising how many leaders are not intentional about developing their leadership skills. So, resolve this year to find some way to increase your leadership skills and abilities. There are so many resources available to help us develop as leaders. Several resources jump to the forefront of my mind at the very thought of leadership development. I am a very big fan of Leadercast and I have been a co-sponsor of one of the local simulcasts here in the Houston area. There are also many books on leadership that can be obtained via Kindle at much lower costs rather than in hard copy. Nearly all of my books are in some eReader format. Just reach out to me if you are looking for resources and I can help you identify some. Continue reading “Leaders and Resolutions”

December 21, 2015

Toughest Leadership Role, Ever!

Consider something for just a moment as we prepare for Christmas this week. Can you imagine a more difficult leadership role than being the earthly father of Jesus Christ? I cannot!

My goal is not to make this article an overtly spiritual one. However, given the Christmas Season and my thoughts at this time of year, some observations and some leadership lessons are unavoidable.

Just who was this man Joseph, the husband of Mary and the adoptive father of Jesus?

We really don’t know a whole lot about him other than what we read in the few places he is mentioned in the New Testament. Traditional Christian narrative and theology state that God chose Joseph to be the earthly father of Jesus. We can read in the Gospel of Matthew, that Joseph was a righteous man. His actions toward Mary, his betrothed wife (fiancé), revealed a great deal about his character. It demonstrates that he was a patient, kind, understanding, and sensitive man. When Mary told Joseph she was pregnant, he had every right to feel disgraced and humiliated. He knew the child was not his.

He had “rights”. Our rights have always been an important thing to us as individuals. Joseph not only had the right to divorce Mary but under Jewish law, she could be put to death.

Joseph’s initial reaction was to break the engagement. This was the culturally and religiously appropriate thing for a righteous man like Joseph to do. However, consistent with his character, he treated Mary with extreme kindness. He did not want to cause her further shame, so he decided to do what needed to be done quietly.

But that is not what happened. Instead, Scripture tells us that God sent an angel to Joseph. It may even have been the same angel that visited Mary to bring her the news that she was going to give birth to Our Lord. This angel verified the same story that Mary had told Joseph and reassured him that his marriage to Mary was still God’s will. In fact, it had been the divine plan all along. It is important not to lose sight of that fact. So, Joseph willingly did as the angel told him, in spite of the public humiliation he would face. Perhaps it was this quality that made him God’s choice for Jesus’ earthly father.

Beyond this and the story of the one time that Jesus was left behind following a pilgrimage to the Temple, the Bible does not reveal much detail about Joseph’s role as a father to Jesus Christ. However, we do know from Matthew 1, that Joseph was an excellent earthly example of integrity and righteousness. We know that Joseph trained Jesus in a very necessary trade of the times — carpentry. It was not glamorous. But, probably no one ever described Joseph in those terms.

Joseph is last mentioned in the Bible when Jesus was 12 years old and they made that annual visit to the Temple in Jerusalem. So really, all we know from written evidence is that Joseph passed on the carpentry trade to Jesus and that he raised him in the Jewish traditions and spiritual observances of the Law.

So, what is the Leadership Lesson here?

Continue reading “Toughest Leadership Role, Ever!”

July 3, 2015

Thinkers are Revolutionary Leaders

Tomorrow is not “The Fourth of July.” That is a date on a calendar. It is not the name of the National Holiday that we celebrate tomorrow. The name of the holiday that we celebrate tomorrow is Independence Day. It is the day that we celebrate the declaration of our independence from England.

Today I wish to focus on that word – Independence.

Most organizations are looking for people (and leaders) who can think independently and have the necessary leadership qualities to help act upon those thoughts and make their organization successful.

A Leadership Definition

Many people have different definitions for leadership. Some have boiled it down to just one word – “Influence.” But in general, leadership is the ability of one person to gain agreement, support, and active participation to accomplish a task or a goal. Perhaps it is at the most basic level an ability to get people to follow you. Julius Caesar, Abraham Lincoln, Napoleon Bonaparte, Jack Welch, Steve Jobs, Michael Jordan, Joe Montana, and Jesus Christ are all leaders in their own unique ways. Some would not be necessarily considered positive leaders. Nor would we want to emulate their actions.

Julius Caesar ushered in the Roman Empire at the cost of the Roman Republic.
Abraham Lincoln held the fledgling United States together after the secession of the southern states and the Civil War.
Napoleon Bonaparte used his creative military strategies and personal charisma to create and rule a great empire.
Jack Welch took over the reigns at General Electric and during his tenure there, the company’s value rose 4,000%.
Steve Jobs used his intelligence and passion for computers to “revolutionized six industries: personal computers, animated movies, music, phones, tablet computing, and digital publishing.”
Michael Jordan became one of the greatest basketball leaders and players of all time because of his desire to continually improve, work hard, and take over in tough situations late in the game.
Joe Montana holds Super Bowl career records for most passes without an interception (122 in 4 games) and he has the all-time highest quarterback rating of 127.8.
And then there is Jesus Christ. And, well, if you don’t get Him being on the list, then nothing I can say will change that.

Leadership Skills

There are hundreds, if not thousands, of books on leadership. And there are thousands, or maybe even hundreds of thousands of blogs, just like this one, dedicated to leadership. Many of these books and blogs identify similar traits, attributes, or skills that comprise a good leader. Here are a few of the most common: Continue reading “Thinkers are Revolutionary Leaders”

December 27, 2014

The Big Let Down

It has been 2 days since Christmas. And you can go ahead and admit it. You are feeling a little let down after all of the excitement, aren’t you? The presents are all unwrapped. There may still be a big mess. But the fun part is over.

Well, maybe that is part of the problem. The fun part (the party or the kids ripping presents open) is over and there is nothing left but the cleaning up of the mess from Christmas morning. We all feel that “big let down” right about now.

That feeling is normal. We all feel it sooner or later throughout the Holiday season. It comes sooner and more pronounced for some than for others. But there is always a little bit of disappointment around about now.

Everyone likes decorating the tree. We can’t wait to get the tree and get it decorated and begin enjoying the Christmas season. But no one wants to put the tree away and pack away all of the ornaments and lights for next year. That is such a let down. Continue reading “The Big Let Down”