Leadership Lessons | All About Being "Emotionally Agile"

May 26, 2015

Leadership Lessons from Product Designers

Jony Ive, is a Senior Vice President of Design at Apple. He outlined his three key tips for designers during a talk at London’s Design Museum. These three practices – although crafted in product design and development language – are spot on for leaders intent on bringing new life to plateaued or declining organizations.

Jony Ive’s 3 Leadership Lessons

In his talk Ive offered up three key practices for high-tech product designers. In order to excel, these innovative product designers must:

Learn how to care
Learn how to focus
Be prepared to screw up and throw things away

Many times product designers work in start-up or entrepreneurial ventures. Cash is not yet king and errors are costly. Too many errors in these early stages will bankrupt a fledgling company and prevent us from ever experiencing their remarkable products.

Those product designers who work in established and mature organizations often experience a cut throat world where the product designer that hits on a winning design is potentially rich beyond his wildest dreams. But the carefree days and camaraderie of the start-up are long gone.

What is the Leadership Lesson in these three practices?

Continue reading “Leadership Lessons from Product Designers”

May 20, 2015

Vision provides the “What” – Leadership provides the “How”

My personal journey toward understanding leadership began many years ago. It began in a medium-sized church in Marietta, Georgia in 1983.

Prior to that point I had been an observer. And I had observed some incredible leaders. I would put my own father in that category. His leadership in many areas are an inspiration to me to this very day. But I have observed many different leaders in these past 32 years. I learned as much as I could from men like Bill Searcy, an entrepreneur and small business owner in the Atlanta metropolitan area. He owned a Firestone auto repair shop. I owned a piece of junk Chevy Celebrity that went through 4 sets of brakes in 2 and a half years. It was a “lemon” and I didn’t realize it. We were destined to spend time together. He taught me more about leadership than just about any one else early in my leadership journey. I owe him a great debt of gratitude.

That kind of observation over the years has shown to me that there are two distinct skill sets that are identifiable among those who would consider themselves to be leaders. There are those that “see” what needs to happen. And there are those who “make” it happen. My observation is that it is actually “vision” that provides the “what” or the goal and objective. But it is “leadership” that provides the “how” and the plan to execute the vision that has been laid out.

Let’s consider for a moment those two skill sets:

Continue reading “Vision provides the “What” – Leadership provides the “How””

May 16, 2015

Put Your Oxygen Mask On First

You may have heard these words before and not given them much thought. Today, you have an opportunity to think about them from a fresh perspective.

If you are traveling with children, or are seated next to someone who needs assistance, place the mask on yourself first, then offer assistance. Continue using the mask until advised by a uniformed crew member to remove it.

This is part of the safety briefing that I have heard way too many times in recent days. Upon a quick review of my flight activity on United’s website I was a little surprised to realize that I have flown almost 92,000 miles on United or another Star Alliance carrier since the beginning of the year. And I have flown another 15,000 miles on other carriers in that time.

You hear basically the same safety briefing on every flight. They are fairly dry and emotionless. Unlike some of the funny stuff you hear coming out of Southwest Airlines, United doesn’t see a lot of benefit in humor.

The part about the oxygen mask caused me to pause and ponder a bit recently. The flight attendant asks you to place your mask over your face FIRST. You are asked to do that BEFORE you offer assistance to your children or anyone else who may need your help. I am not sure about you, but that is a concept that would be hard and seem at odds with the heart of a loving father if my children or grandchildren were onboard with me.

What is the Leadership Lesson?

The leadership lesson is that we must realize it is important as leaders that we focus on ourselves from time to time in order that we will have sufficient energy and resources to lead and be a force for change and growth in those around us.

How do we do that?

Here are 5 things that you can do to put your oxygen mask on first: Continue reading “Put Your Oxygen Mask On First”

May 8, 2015

Today’s Task: Sharpen Your Sword

Stephen Covey popularized the notion in his book, The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People, that we must take time to stop and sharpen our saw from time to time if we are going to successfully cut down the trees and saw the logs that are before us on a daily basis.

And here is one of my favorite sources for quotes, Sir Winston Churchill. He said,

“When the battle drum beats, it is too late to sharpen your sword.”

So, today, I stop and address the topmost task on my ToDo List today: Sharpen the sword.

There are few places as inspiring and motivating as Leadercast when it comes to allowing us a time to stop and listen to some folks with very sharp swords. It also provides me some time and the opportunity to interact with folks who are equally concerned about putting an edge on their swords. Today, I join with many thousands of leaders from all walks of life in participating in one of the Leadership local simulcasts.

I do not know when the battle drum will beat and I will need my sword and will need it to be sharp. So, in the lull between battles, I find the time to tend to that task.

What is the leadership lesson?

The leadership lesson is Continue reading “Today’s Task: Sharpen Your Sword”

April 22, 2015

Nurturing Young Leaders

Welcome to the final Leadership Lesson from the Saguaro Cactus. I never expected this level of inspiration from a desert plant.

One of the things that I noticed about the young Saguaro cacti is that they sprout and grow in the shadow of another desert plant. They do not sprout and grow in the shadow of another Saguaro cactus.

I found that fascinating.

They are found in the shadow of what is called a “nurse tree” This is a larger, faster-growing tree that shelters a smaller, slower-growing tree or plant. The nurse tree can provide shade, shelter from wind, or protection from animals who would feed on the smaller plant.

In the Sonoran desert, Palo Verde, Ironwood or mesquite trees serve as nurse trees for young Saguaro cacti. As the Saguaro grows and becomes more acclimated to the desert sun, the older tree may die, leaving the Saguaro alone. In fact, as the Saguaro grows larger it may compete for resources with its nurse tree, and thus, hasten the death of the tree that protected and nurtured it. Consequently, young Saguaros are often seen near trees, but old Saguaros are not.

What does this have to do with leadership?

I am not sure it does. In fact, I think it really has to do with the relationship between those that surround and, in many ways, nurture leaders and encourage leadership. Continue reading “Nurturing Young Leaders”

April 20, 2015

It’s What’s on the Inside that Counts

My wife and I spent last week on a quest. Our quest was to find and photograph the quintessential Saguaro cactus. And this was a great quest. I wrote a little about it over the week-end and I hope you have had a chance to check out the first leadership lesson I learned from the Saguaro cactus.

And by the way, it is pronounced “sah-wah-ro” and not “sah-gwah-ro”.

Here is the second leadership lesson for us to consider based upon the Saguaro Cactus. It is what’s on the inside that counts.

Many of us who have ever considered the Saguaro cactus cannot get past the exterior to even consider what may be on the inside.

If you can get past the prickly spines of the exterior you will find “ribs” forming a circle below the surface. As impressive (and sometimes painful) as those spines can be, they are only a defensive mechanism for the cactus. It is the interior rib structure that forms the support that enables a fully grown cactus, that can weigh up to 12000 pounds, to stand and support its own massive weight.

I was unaware of the internal structure of the Saguaro until our recent visit to the Arizona-Sonora Desert Museum. Here I was able to see up close the wonderful Saguaro Cactus.

What does this have to do with leadership?

Continue reading “It’s What’s on the Inside that Counts”

April 18, 2015

The Quintessential Leader

We are currently on a quest. My wife and I are on a quest to find and to photograph the perfect and the “quintessential Saguaro cactus.”

You know the one that I mean. You see it on every Arizona license plate and every Wile E. Coyote and Roadrunner cartoon. It has the tall central trunk and one arm on each side that bend at a 90 degree angle and point heavenward. One sits only slightly higher than the other an offer perfect and artful symmetrical balance.

We have seen probably 100,000 Saguaro cactuses in the last few days. We have seen big ones, little ones, solitary ones, multi-armed ones, and we have even seen some blooming ones. But we are having a hard time locating that one that we see drawn or painted in nearly every piece of southwestern art. We cannot seem to locate the one that we have pictured in our mind’s eye. The picture perfect Saguaro cactus.

What does this have to do with leadership?

Many of us are looking for the “quintessential leader.” We are looking for the picture perfect leader. The picture perfect leaders is 39 years old, yet he has 50 years of leadership experience. He is seriously humorous. He is a compassionate tough guy. He is results oriented with a perfect work-life balance. He is perfect.

There is only problem. Continue reading “The Quintessential Leader”

April 2, 2015

Beware of the Lure to be Likable

I guess I am still not done with the whole “like-ability” discussion. So, I continue the discussion with a warning to beware of the lure to be likable.

Leaders are often placed under a tremendous amount of pressure to be relatable and to be nice. Many follow the natural tendency to want to be liked because it feels much easier to be liked than to be viewed as capable and accomplishment driven.

Few leaders want to be the bad guy. And those that do want to be the “heavy” are not the kind of leader that I am drawn to!

But as leaders we are expected to make the tough decisions that serve the organization or the team’s best interests. Trying to be too nice can in fact be lazy, inefficient, irresponsible, and harmful to individuals and the organization.

I’ve seen this happen many times in my personal and professional career. Leaders get almost addicted to a sense of being likable. They make a mistake in staffing or in a major decision. This can happen to anyone, and the best way to remedy the situation is to address it quickly. However, despite the obvious solution to the rest of the team, some leaders keep on trying to make it work.

While it is a good thing to follow our instinct to stick to it and be consistent, if you fast forward a few weeks or months, the situation is no better and often worse.

There’s a key lesson here for any leader

Nice is only good when it’s coupled with a rational perspective and the ability to make difficult choices. Continue reading “Beware of the Lure to be Likable”

March 31, 2015

The Genesis Model of Creative Leadership

Creative leaders draw the best thinking out of the individual team members before calling a general brainstorming session.

This is the assertion in Chapter 1 of Tom Harper’s book, Leading from the Lion’s Den. In his book he presents leadership lessons from every book of the Bible. Consider this one from Genesis:

“In the beginning God created the heavens and the earth.” – Gen 1:1

Many organizations today foster creative teamwork through collaborative instant messaging, chat windows, discussion boards, and project groups. My company uses a myriad of technology tools as well as recently construction an entire corporate campus to foster collaboration.

Though today’s online cooperation might appear to be a new kind of brainstorming, it is actually based on a tried and true model of creativity. The old standard concept is simple: the best creative thinking is done when individuals have a chance to think before they collaborate.

Not everyone thinks well in groups. The rapid-fire atmosphere of some brainstorming methodologies can be very disconcerting to some otherwise highly creative members of your team. Continue reading “The Genesis Model of Creative Leadership”

January 4, 2015

Three Things About Failure

How many times have you heard that failure is just a stepping-stone to success?

Although it is true, it is not very helpful just knowing that little tidbit. The fact of the matter is, just knowing this is simply not enough. It’s not going to actually bring you success and it’s not going to help you become a better leader.

The fact remains that most people are afraid to fail. We’ve been conditioned since childhood that it’s a bad thing. Failing a test in school didn’t exactly get us one step closer to an “A” now did it? Want to start up a new business? Don’t fail. Because if you do you will lose all your capital that you invested in the venture.

Failing at something doesn’t mean that you have no skills or abilities, or you don’t know how to do anything.

Consider this. Failure, after you strip out the emotions, is just feedback. And it’s from this feedback that we should extract the lessons, learn from them, and apply them to our leadership development. Here now are three things that I think we need to consider where failure is concerned. Continue reading “Three Things About Failure”