Only three weeks until 2012—21 days. It’s a busy time of year. There are parties and Christmas programs to attend; shopping, cooking and decorating to finish up; guest bedrooms to clean; maybe changing the oil and vacuuming the car before that frantic Christmas Eve trip to Grandma’s. Plus, there are still customers to please (especially in retail), sermons to prepare, etc., etc., etc.
No one needs a list of more things to do between now and January 1st. I’m going to give you one anyway. Why? Because you need to finish well in 2011 and these five things will help.
#1 Do That Thing You Have Been Putting Off For Months It’s that “call back” note on your desk…the garage to clean (me!)…a report to write…a visit to the doctor…you know what it is. Don’t let it continue to nag you in 2012.
#2 Spend Time With The Water Boy Every organization has a water boy. The water boy goes about his job in anonymity. She cleans the office at night or he opens up the church early on Sunday mornings. Take 15 minutes to sit down and talk. Learn about his hobby and her kids. Listen for that hidden message from the heart. Say “thank you.” It will be a great finish to the water boy’s year…and yours.
#3 Forgive Someone From the mega-best seller, Unbroken, by Laura Hillenbrand:
“The paradox of vengefulness is that it makes men dependent upon those who have harmed them, believing that their release from pain will come only when they make their tormentors suffer. In seeking the Bird’s death to free himself, Louie had chained himself, once again, to his tyrant. During the war, the Bird had been unwilling to let go of Louie; after the war, Louie was unable to let go of the Bird.”
When we don’t forgive, we become a victim twice. First, when we are hurt, and second, when we chain ourselves to the pain. Bitterness and a desire for revenge are heavier weights than the original hurt; carrying them will wear you out emotionally. It’s not easy, but 2012 will be a much better year if you let go.
#4 Escape For A Day For just one day, turn off your iPhone…don’t check email…turn off the tv. Let your mind and emotions fully escape and rest. The world will still be there the next day.
#5 Be Thankful Starting today and every day through December 31, be thankful for one specific thing. Did you have a warm place to sleep? Did you see a Salvation Army bell ringer? Were the police on duty on Christmas day? A list of 21 things will be easy if you focus on what you have instead of what you don’t have. A good starting place is to thank God for the grace and mercy he offers to all of us in Jesus.
No matter how busy you are, you have time to do these five things. Start 2012 by finishing well in 2011. You’ll be glad you did.
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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Some things never change. It was about 2300 years ago when the Greek philosopher Aristotle said:
“Criticism is something we can avoid easily by…doing nothing….”
About 100 years ago, our philosopher president, Teddy Roosevelt said:
“It behooves every man to remember that the work of the critic is of altogether secondary importance, and that, in the end, progress is accomplished by the man who does things.”
If you want to avoid the critics, then do nothing and accomplish nothing. Don’t run for president. Don’t aspire to leadership in your company. Don’t make suggestions. Don’t volunteer. Don’t become a pastor or school principal. Don’t get “in the arena” (another familiar Teddy Roosevelt quote) and stay out of the kitchen. The kitchen is always hot for leaders. Leadership is not for the thin-skinned who wither every time the critics show up, and they will always show up if you are trying to do something significant. So let me make it simple for you: if you can’t handle criticism, you won’t be able to lead effectively.
Since every leadership situation is different, there is not a one size fits all formula for coping. My suggestion is to answer the following four questions as fully and honestly as you can before you respond to the critics.
Question #1: Who or what is the target? Criticism can be specific to the leader: “she’s a lousy CEO” or “he can’t preach worth a flip.” It can be directed at a group: “union members are lazy and overpaid” or “the engineers don’t know how to design anything we can actually build.” A project can be the target of criticism: “buying that machine is a waste of money” or “why on earth do we need a new building for the children’s ministry?” Though all criticism may feel personal, it isn’t always personal. Recognizing the target is an important first step in deciding whether to respond and how to respond.
Question #2: Who is the source? “Consider the source” is wise counsel. Is the critic an insider or outsider? Is the critic an enemy who would oppose most anything you try to do, or someone who usually—but not this time—supports what you are trying to do? Is the criticism from one person or many? Is the critic someone who believes they have the “gift of criticism” and feels entitled—even obligated—to exercise the gift every chance they get?
Question #3: What is the motive of the criticism? Criticism can arise from damaged self-interests, wounded egos, jealousy, hurt feelings, and so on. Sometimes, it arises from well-intentioned and honest disagreement. Understanding the motive—to hurt or help—is a key part of developing your response.
Question #4: How true is the criticism? It is a serious mistake to automatically discount all criticism as untrue and irrelevant, no matter the source. Good people with good intentions are sometimes correctly criticized by good people with good intentions. Presume the critic has good intent so you will assess the criticism for truth with an open mind. Don’t try to assess the truth of it by yourself, especially if the criticism is personal. Ask people you trust, “What does this mean and is it true?”
Responding To Criticism Your response will flow out of the answers to the above four questions. You may—often wisely—choose to ignore the criticism and keep working. If you choose to respond, don’t react quickly or in anger.Laurence J. Peter, author of The Peter Principle, said it this way:
“Speak when you are angry and you’ll make the best speech you’ll ever regret.”
So go slowly and be calm. The target of your response should be the criticism, not the critic. The purpose of your response should be to elevate truth, not self. The tone of your response should be to build up, not tear down.
Finally, when the sticks and stones do actually hurt, don’t let criticism turn you into a critic.
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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Jessie Garrett was my high school math teacher who asked me, “Where are you going to college?” One year later, I was at Georgia Tech studying Aerospace Engineering. Thanks, Jessie.
John Duhon was my first boss in the aerospace business. He overlooked my “know-it-all” attitude and obnoxious behavior as an engineering intern. Thanks, John.
Jim Rourke let me write a paper and present it at an aerospace conference in only my second year out of college. Thanks, Jim.
Jan Drees chose me to become a project engineer, my first step into real leadership. Thanks, Jan.
Ted Hoffman taught me what I needed to know about customers. Thanks, Ted.
Jack Floyd gave me a lot more freedom than I deserved. Thanks, Jack.
Cliff Kalista gave me my first job in marketing. Thanks, Cliff.
Bob Eggars taught me how to manage a project, delivering almost 500 helicopters in one year. Thanks, Bob.
John Kleban trusted me enough to run finance even though I had never even had an accounting course. Thanks, John.
Bev Dolan was my #1 supporter at the corporate office. Thanks, Bev.
Fred Hubbard recommended me to replace him as president. Thanks, Fred.
Dick, Kurt, Julie, John, Mike, Diane, David, Sandy, Linda and many others all fully supported me as I stumbled around learning how to lead. Thanks, all of you.
Laura and Kyle encouraged me during dark days. Thanks, guys.
Carl Roberts told me that Hard Lessons was exactly what I should do and sponsored the first workshop at his company. Thanks, Carl.
Dottie, my wife of 44 years, took care of the fort while I traveled more than 2 million miles. She raised two wonderful daughters and stood by me and supported me—for better or worse. She was the better part. I was the worse part. Thanks, Dottie, I love you.
God knows me—really knows me—and loves me anyway. Thanks, God.
Whatever success you have enjoyed, you didn’t pull it off by yourself. Take a few minutes this Thursday to remember those who helped you along the way.
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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For lunch today, I had vanilla yogurt mixed with granola (very embarrassing for an Okie). The granola was triple berry crunch by Bear Naked. Actually, it was good…not as good as Five Guys, but good and I am feeling very virtuous for eating healthy.
I stumbled across the Bear Naked story in Seth Godin’s book, Tribes. Intrigued by the name, I googled for info and wow…what a story! Bear Naked was started in 2002 by Kelly Flatley and Brendan Synnott. Kelly was the granola expert; Brendan the market guru and visionary. Investing their life savings of $7000, they started in Kelly’s parents’ kitchen making 100 pounds of granola per day which they sold at sidewalk sales and small local health food outlets. By the end of year one, they had about 25 customers, all in Connecticut. Only three years later, Bear Naked was on the shelves in 10,000 stores nationwide and had the #1 and #2 granola products in the U.S. In 2007, they sold the company to Kashi (a Kellogg Company) for $60+ million. Not bad for a $7000 initial investment.
There is much more to their story than I can include in this post. Go to bearnaked.com/ourstory for all the details. Some things that really caught my eye are:
◊ Bear Naked—what a great name—an essential for a start-up; Kelly would spark interest in the product by asking customers, “Do you want to get bear naked?”
◊ Passion for their product—they were all-in with their time and money
◊ An uncompromising commitment to quality
◊ Knowing when it was too soon to let go (they said “no” to venture capital money) and knowing when it was time to let go (they said “yes” to Kellogg)
One of the highlights of their story is their breakthrough into Stew Leonard’s chain of Connecticut grocery stores. After the buyer wouldn’t even return their phone calls (for months), they decided to surprise him with an early morning Bear Naked breakfast. They showed up at the corporate office with a presentation of granola, fresh fruit and Stew Leonard’s yogurt on china (borrowed from Kelly’s mom), only to find out that the buyer was on vacation. However, as they were leaving, Stew Leonard, Jr., walked in and they quickly redirected their attention to him with, “We brought you breakfast.” He was intrigued by their audacity and two hours later they walked out with an order for fifty cases of granola. The rest of the story…so to speak…is history.
Take a few minutes to read their story on the Bear Naked website, then let me know what you learned…what jumped out at you and will help you in your business—large or small.
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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According to the Gallup organization only about 30% of employees in a typical American workplace are actively engaged in their job. The rest—70%—are benchwarmers taking up space, doing only what they are told to do, and waiting for payday and Friday (my words, not Gallup’s).
Interestingly, the percentages don’t change much because of age, education, gender or even income. People making more than $90,000 per year are no more engaged than people making less than $36,000 per year. Imagine that. Gallup has proved once again that pay is not a long-term motivator for most people.
Is there something leaders can do to raise the engagement level? Yes. Employees will engage with their jobs when leaders engage with their employees. It’s that simple.
So if you are the leader, it’s up to you. Try this: sit down with one of your unengaged employees, ask how you can help him, listen (really listen), ask questions, act like you owe her as much as she owes you. Do it with somebody else tomorrow…and the day after…and the day after…. Is it worth the effort? Yes! Imagine your competitive advantage and improved productivity if you can increase your engagement level to 40% or even 50%. Why don’t you get started today?
[I became aware of the Gallup report at Wally Bock’s Three Star Leadership Blog, a daily read for me.]
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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I have just finished reading Valley Forge by Newt Gingrich & William R. Forstchen. Approximately 2500-3000 American soldiers died from exposure, disease and starvation during the winter of 1777-78. Yet, in June of 1778, they came out of that winter and held their own against a well-trained, well-fed and well-equipped British army at Monmouth Court House (NJ). It was at Monmouth that the Continental army learned that they could win on the battlefield and could in the end win their independence.
The British expected the Continental army to fold after their devastating winter at Valley Forge. Instead, the army came out stronger and eager to fight. Why? Leadership. Excerpts from the book:
About General Marquis de Lafayette:
“…he sought no rank whatsoever and would fight as a private volunteer.”
“While other generals were quick to find dry, warm quarters, Lafayette could often be found out on the picket line in the very eye of a driving storm….”
About Baron Friedrich von Steuben:
“You do not win allies by berating them and showing them their shortcomings. You win them by offering your hand.”
“…a good officer will find that a private sees far more than an officer at times.”
About George Washington:
“He had long drilled himself…to not think of himself….”
“One ill-chosen response, one flash of temper, of self-serving behavior or blame-casting, one day of failed leadership could shatter the fragile core that held this army together.”
These excerpts speak for themselves. Lafayette, Steuben and Washington. Don’t you wish we had leaders like this in Washington…in corporations…in churches?
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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Dottie (my wife) and I have just returned from a trip to California, highlighted by spending several days with Don and Susan Couch. (Don was my college roommate.) One of his hobbies is home winemaking—easy to understand since he lives near 10,000 or so wineries.
Instead of buying an expensive home wine-making kit, he decided to muster his own kit, only buying what he really needed. Impressed and interested, I asked how he got started and he replied, “I bought a garbage can.” Yes, a garbage can, followed by what looked like a Crystal Springs 5-gallon water bottle, then a small oak container, wine bottles, and so on. He spent about $300 and yielded several dozen bottles of wine, one of which I sampled. I don’t know if his wine would win any awards, but it tasted fine to me.
Now, like me, you may be thinking, “A garbage can? Can you make decent wine using a garbage can?” The answer is yes. Why? Because the first stage of wine making is called primary fermentation and it doesn’t much matter what kind of container you use as long as it is clean. The type of container used for primary fermentation wouldn’t make a list of the 20 most important things about wine making. Grapes, water, temperature, yeast, etc., are all much more important than the container you first dump them in to get fermentation started. So why spend hundreds on a container when $10-15 will do just as well?
There is a great lesson in this for businesses, churches, or organizations of any kind. Spend your money on what will really make a difference in the outcome. The next time you are tempted to spend time, money or energy on something, ask yourself, “Am I doing this because it will look good and feed my ego, or will it really make a difference in results?” If you aren’t sure, then try the garbage can first. You can always spend the big bucks later if you need to.
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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Warren Bennis, the “dean of leadership gurus” (Forbes, 1996), said this about leadership:
“The most dangerous leadership myth is that leaders are born—that there is a genetic factor to leadership. This myth asserts that people simply either have certain charismatic qualities or not. That’s nonsense; in fact, the opposite is true. Leaders are made rather than born.”
How are leaders “made”? By learning…
“an identifiable set of skills and practices that are available to all of us….”
(The Leadership Challenge, Kouzes and Posner)
The whole purpose of Hard Lessons is to “make” you a better leader by equipping you with simple, effective, practical leadership tools that work in the real world—tools you can begin to use immediately, the very next day—with no therapy required.
The Hard Lessons workshop on Monday, October 24, is sponsored by and a fund-raiser for Williamson Christian College (meaning no fee for me). The cost is $175ea; $150ea for groups of three or more. You will receive donation credit for all but $25.
Workshop Agenda
Leadership Under A Magnifying Glass
If it was easy, anybody could do it.
Avoiding Change Wreck
Is change hard, or do we make it hard?
Raising Your Leadership FICO Score
Credibility—you can’t lead without it.
Creating Greener Pastures
Make sure your most talented employees want to stay.
Leadership Flea Market
The hardest person to lead is…
Plus…
Eight Lessons I Learned The Hard Way
Is it worth the time and money? Check out the feedback from previous workshops at www.hard-lessons.com.
Sign up today at www.williamsoncc.edu. Click Stakeholder Path, then Donate Now, enter the information requested and put attendee names in the Comments block.
This will be a great day for a great cause. I look forward to seeing you.
[Please forward this to anyone you know who might be interested.]
Dottie and I have just returned from 11 days of relaxation on the Northern California coast. We were entertained by seals, sea lions, whales, waves, fog, sunshine and wind music—through the trees and in the car. While driving south on CA 101 toward San Francisco, we were distracted from enjoying the redwoods on the Avenue Of The Giants by an irritating and intermittent whistling sound produced by a small air leak somewhere in the car.
Since I have a degree in Aerospace Engineering, it occurred to me that I should explain to Dottie why the wind music comes and goes, so I launched into a brilliant explanation of wind speed and direction, car speed and direction, and so on. She dutifully listened. I smugly concluded with “I learned that in college.” Unimpressed, Dottie smugly countered with “I learned that blowing on coke bottles when I was eight years old.” (Please don’t laugh more than five minutes.)
There are a lot of things we make more complicated than they need to be. Leadership is one of them. In simple terms, a leader is someone who knows where he (or she) is going, knows the way, has influenced others to willingly follow, and is out front slaying the dragons, removing obstacles, picking up followers when they stumble or fall behind, and doing it all the way to the finish line. Leading is not about position (CEO, senior pastor, owner or whatever). It is not about power, and it doesn’t depend on education. (Even an MBA from Harvard doesn’t make someone a leader.) It is not about being charismatic or a great communicator. I love this quote from The Leadership Challenge (Kouzes and Posner):
Leadership is an identifiable set of skills and practices that are available to all of us, not just a few charismatic men and women. The “great person”…theory of leadership is just plain wrong.”
If you are struggling in leadership, maybe you have made it too complicated. Quit worrying about your DISC score, personality, position, title, rights, etc., and start doing what effective leaders do. Not sure what they do? A Hard Lessons workshop will help you get started. Contact me (dickwells@hard-lessons.com) for information about the October 24 workshop benefiting Williamson Christian College.
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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In 1950, an eighteen-year-old Mickey Mantle played shortstop for the Joplin Miners. In 137 games, he made 55 errors, one every 2½ games. How bad is that? So far in 2011, the best shortstop in the major leagues has made one error every 23 games and the worst shortstop, one error every 5 games. Mickey Mantle was twice as bad as the worst shortstop playing major league baseball today. It is probably safe to say that he was the worst shortstop to ever play baseball. However, he was one of the best hitters to ever play baseball. In the same year that he made 55 errors, he hit .383, including 26 homeruns. One year later, in 1951, he began his eighteen-year Hall Of Fame career with the Yankees which included a Gold Glove for fielding in 1962. From the worst shortstop to a Gold Glove? Yes, but it wasn’t at shortstop, it was center field.
Casey Stengel is the one who moved him. Watching Mantle throw balls out of the first basemen’s reach, Stengel came charging out of the dugout, yelling, “I’m gonna teach him how to play center field…and I don’t want to see him at shortstop again” (from The Last Boy: Mickey Mantle by Jane Leavy).
In First, Break All The Rules, Marcus Buckingham & Curt Coffman say that great managers—baseball and otherwise—“Focus on…strengths and manage around weaknesses….” They “…don’t try to fix the weaknesses.” Stengel knew that trying to fix Mantle’s weaknesses at shortstop would yield a mediocre shortstop at best. However, by utilizing his great speed in center field, he could be something special. He was following the Good To Great principle of getting the “right people in the right seat.” Mantle was clearly a “right people” and center field was clearly the “right seat” for him.
The leadership lessons from this are:
◊ Superstars can’t play every position. Do you think Peyton Manning would be a Hall Of Fame wide receiver?
◊ Don’t exhaust yourself trying to shore up weaknesses—your own or anyone else’s.
◊ If your talented players aren’t performing, maybe they are out of position. Move them before you give up on them.
Casey Stengel was a good player; he was a great Hall Of Fame manager. Why? He knew how to manage great talent. That is what will make you a great manager too.
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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