Delta has the most aircraft and carries the most passengers.
United flies to the most cities.
Southwest passengers have the most fun.
American just filed for bankruptcy (as have all of their major competitors—Delta, USAir, United, Northwest, and Continental—in previous years), putting several hundred thousand of my frequent flyer miles at risk.
Do you know which of these has the best “on time” score? Which has the highest “customer satisfaction” ranking? Which is the most profitable (based on earnings per share) and beat overall airline stock performance by 55% last year?
The answer is “none of the above.”
The best airline in America today is…Alaska Airlines. Surprised? Me too.
You may be thinking it is because they are non-union since it is popular to blame the unions for most everything these days. Nope—they are 80% unionized.
So maybe it’s because they have mostly good weather flights. Are you kidding? They fly primarily in the Pacific Northwest and Alaska. Have you ever been up there in the winter?
How did a relatively obscure airline become the best? Per their CEO, Bill Ayer, in a WSJ article by Matthew Kaminski on 2/4/12:
They have focus…they share the wealth…they keep it simple…they only expand when it will be profitable. Works for them. Will it work for you? You won’t know unless you try it.
I wish they would expand into Nashville.
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© Copyright 2012 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
As a boy growing up in Oklahoma, there wasn’t much I liked more than an Indians versus wagon train movie, especially if John Wayne was the one who led the charge to rescue the wagon train. (Of course, this means my favorite movies and TV shows are 50 or so years old and often in black and white.) When evening came after a long, hot, dry day on the trail, ever alert for hostiles, they would “circle the wagons” so they could sit around the campfires, eat a gourmet meal cooked by somebody named Sagebrush, and sing songs about the prairie while they gazed at the stars. Then it was off to bed for a night of sweet dreams about how wonderful California was going to be. Well…that’s what they did in the movies. The circled wagons were a respite from the constant danger—a place of safety that took the edge off of the fear that hovered over the trail every day.
It is a wise leader who knows when it is time to circle the wagons; there are a lot of reasons to circle up every now and then.
When you are tired and need rest is a good time to circle up. You have been hard at it for weeks on special projects, introducing new products or services, relocating, and so on. Your followers are exhausted and a day or two by the campfire will re-energize them for the rest of the journey.
Sometimes you have to stop to fix the wagon wheel that is busted and fill empty water barrels or put ointment on lame horses. You need to take some time to repair the damage from the hard journey so far before you set out again. Especially, look for damaged relationships.
If everyone is afraid because intense new competition, or new technology, or a slowing economy is threatening the future, you need to circle up to counter the fear. Your followers are looking for you to be calm, unafraid and determined to fight and win.
A good reason to circle the wagons is when it’s time to have a party: you have finished a long climb up a mountain and see the ocean for the first time, the new building is finished, or the numbers are in and it was a record breaking year. You may be ready to move on, but everyone else wants to look at the view and celebrate a bit.
Circling the wagons can take a lot of forms depending on the need and type of organization. As the leader, it’s up to you to know when and how to do it. If you aren’t sure, ask. Your people will love being part of the decision.
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© Copyright 2012 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
In his terrific book, True North, Bill George says: “People today demand personal relationships with their leaders before they will give themselves fully to their jobs.”
If you are the leader, you have a positional relationship with everyone who works for you—you are the boss. However, if you would rather be a leader than a boss—and you should want to—you are going to have to develop personal relationships with you the people you lead.
The starting point for personal relationships in organizations is respect. The building blocks of respect are time…
“How does a person show respect for anything? He gives it time.”
Coach Mike Krzyzewski Leading With The Heart
and listening:
“…listening is probably our greatest opportunity to give attention to others on a daily basis and convey how much we value them.”
James C Hunter The Servant
By the way, M. Scott Peck nailed it when he said, “You cannot truly listen to anyone and do anything else at the same time.” Included in “anything else” are checking email, text messages, and taking phone calls—all of these can wait fifteen minutes. [For me at home, this means putting down the WSJ and turning off CNBC.]
Why fifteen minutes? Because that is about what it takes—on a regular basis—to build a personal relationship with your employees. Fifteen minutes with each one, once a week, listening as they share about their life—kids, hobbies, church, fishing, golf, etc. On their birthdays, make it lunch. And then occasionally, to really show you respect them, ask, “What do you think we should do about _________________?”
Now, some of you are thinking I don’t have time to do this. If you have ten people working for you, it will take 2½ hours per week—about 5% of a 40-50 hour workweek which is typical for leaders. Do you really want to send a message that the people who work for you aren’t worth 5% of your time? What’s at stake here? Only whether your people will “give themselves fully to their jobs,” or not.
Would employees who “give themselves fully to their jobs” make a difference in your organization’s performance, morale, future, etc.? It’s up to you. Get started today…“Hey, Joan, let’s get a cup of coffee.”
© Copyright 2012 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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On Thursday, January 19, 2012, another giant fell. Kodak, one of America’s best known brands, joined a growing list of other iconic brands (American Airlines, Borders and Blockbuster) that couldn’t compete in today’s changing world. AA was done in by high labor costs, Borders by internet competition, and Blockbuster by Netflix. Digital cameras and high quality home printers/cheap online printing spelled doom for Kodak. All of them should have seen it coming, especially Kodak. It’s not as if the move to digital photography was a big surprise that happened overnight. In 1999, Americans bought more than 800 million rolls of film. This year, the number will be less than 50 million.
Robert Burley, an associate professor at Toronto’s Ryerson University, describes Kodak as a “company stuck in time” (from Bloomberg.com, January 19).
Kodak’s initial response to the digital onslaught was Kodak brand digital cameras (technology they pioneered and could have dominated). However, a flood of cheap digital cameras, followed shortly thereafter by cell phones, smart phones and tablets with built-in cameras, short-circuited that strategy. Today, they are trying to penetrate the highly competitive world of inkjet printers, dominated by Hewlett Packard, Epson, etc. Good luck. To keep the doors open, Kodak has been selling what to me is any company’s most valuable asset—intellectual property (patents). It wasn’t enough, so now they are counting on a bankruptcy judge to save them. Isn’t that what leaders are for?
Everything in this world is changing: customer preferences are changing, technology is changing, and demographics are changing. Where will radio be when cars have easy access to the internet? Who can even guess what the ultimate impact of Cloud Computing will be? The birthrate in America will not sustain our traditional population distributions of race and age—what does that mean to the future of your organization? Pastor, where are the twenties—still in your church or down the street in a more formal liturgical church? Is your business printing books? What are you going to do when people go to Barnes and Noble and print their own books?
Any organization that gets “stuck in time” is headed for trouble. What got you to where you are is not likely to keep you there. Leader, it is your job to move your organization into the future, not sustain it in the past. You can lead change or play catch up. Don’t wait until it is too late—get started today!
[The January scorecard for my five New Year’s Resolutions is one A, one B, two C’s, and one Incomplete. How are you doing?]
© Copyright 2012 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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The New York Jets started the 2011 season with high expectations. Their legendary hero, Joe Namath, described the 2011 team as “one of the best we’ve ever seen.” He should have hedged his bet because the Jets finished out of the playoffs with a mediocre 8-8 record, collapsing as the season wound down by losing their last three games. What happened? They were a collection of players, but not a team.
GM Mike Tannenbaum said, “Chemistry was certainly a factor this year.” Future Hall Of Fame running back LaDainian Tomlinson said the locker room was “as bad as any I’ve ever been around.” Others commented that the team, oops, collection of players had some “extremely selfish individuals” and described one player as “lazy and content.”
“Team” is an overused word. Just because a group of people has been pulled together with a common goal doesn’t make it a team.
The first stage of a team is respect for the ability and competence of the other team members. If you don’t believe your teammates “have what it takes,” molding them into a team is going to be impossible.
The second stage of a team is confidence that everyone is actually going to do their job. When the game starts, everyone will step up and get it done.
The third stage of a team is trust that when the going gets tough, teammates won’t undermine each other and will put team interest above self-interests.
The final stage of a team is camaraderie. Respect, confidence and trust have created an environment in which the players have fun working together and care about each other.
If you are the leader, it is your job to mold your collection of followers into a team. It won’t happen just because you all share the same locker room…or office suite…or worship venue. And by the way, “talking out of school” about team problems is not a good thing, but silence about team problems doesn’t fix them. The real problem is lack of respect…or confidence…or trust. Fix that and you won’t have to worry about “talking out of school.”
© Copyright 2012 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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The post offices are closed today—I’m glad. The government offices are closed today—I’m glad. The schools are closed today—I’m glad. I’m glad because it means I get to spend the day with my three grandson buddies, and I’m glad because the day honors Martin Luther King, Jr.
The turbulent 60’s were high school and college years for me. I remember the marches. I remember the cross burnings and lynchings. I remember sit-ins, Rosa Parks and water cannons. I remember Selma, Birmingham and Medgar Evers. I remember working with black laborers who were paid only $1.25 per hour to dig sewer ditches. And, I remember Martin Luther King, Jr., one of the great leaders of the 20th century. If I were an African-American, I would undoubtedly say he was the greatest leader of the 20th century.
When we celebrate July 4th, blacks join in, but they remember they were still slaves in 1776. When we celebrate Washington’s birthday, blacks join in, but they remember that he owned slaves. To African Americans, it is Lincoln and MLK, Jr., who led the fight, first for freedom, and then for equality. These two stand alone in black history; there are no rivals to their legacy. They both led with:
● Purpose
● Courage
● Vision
● Resolve
● Selflessness
The lives of millions were impacted for good by their leadership. Both died young, brought down by an assassin’s bullet. They believed that…
“The quality, not the longevity, of one’s life is what is important.”
Martin Luther King, Jr.
Most of us will not have the opportunity to impact millions by our leadership. However, all of us can impact a few, some hundreds, and a few, thousands. Whatever the size of your sphere of influence, if you want to make a difference, you will have to lead with purpose, courage, vision, resolve and selflessness. Do that and you will leave footprints that endure long after you are gone. Isn’t that what is really important?
© Copyright 2012 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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When I became the leader of a mid-sized aerospace company in the mid-90s, I made it a practice to walk through the manufacturing and office areas on a frequent basis. My predecessor rarely left the executive hallway. With a finance background, he was not comfortable in a factory environment with union employees or with the technical mumbo-jumbo of the engineering department. So when I began to walk around, it was a really big deal to the employees. I got immediate feedback like, “It sure is nice to have the president in the factory.”
Ivory tower leaders have little credibility. You don’t want to hear “Who is that masked man?” when you venture out of your office. Even if they know what you look like, you don’t want to hear, “What’s he doing out here? Did someone mess up?”
Leadership expert John Maxwell rates credibility as more important than vision:
“…if he has not built credibility with his people,
it doesn’t really matter how great a vision he has.”
In their must-read book, The Leadership Challenge (1st edition 1987; now in 4th edition; more than one million copies in twelve languages), James Kouzes and Barry Posner conclude that credibility is the foundation of leadership:
“…more than anything, people want leaders who are credible.
Credibility is the foundation of leadership…
Loyalty, commitment, energy and productivity depend upon it.”
If they are right, and I believe they are, earning credibility with your constituents is a high priority for leaders. Here is what is so amazing. When I began to walk around regularly, I began to earn leadership credibility and I hadn’t even done anything except escape from the executive hall. We have a tendency to think leadership is much more complicated than it really is. Leadership is hard, but it’s not complicated.
Want to raise your leadership credibility? Be visible. Get out of your office. Try walking around. Eat lunch in the mail room or have coffee with the receptionist. That isn’t everything you need to do, but it’s a good start.
© Copyright 2012 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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It’s that time of year again…time for New Year Resolutions (NYRs). More than half of us make NYRs, but so what? One out of three give up before the end of January; one out of four don’t succeed on even one of their resolutions. Only one out twelve are successful on all their NYRs.
I make NYRs almost every year. I have never been fully successful and some years have been in the give up before the end of January group. I don’t say “I give up”—they just fade away. So for me and for most of us, “Why bother?” is a valid question. Actually, “Why bother unless I do something different?” is the question.
I am determined that 2012 will be different (sound familiar?). There are four things I intend to do differently.
#1 I will set reasonable and achievable goals. I don’t have any BHAGs (Big Hairy Audacious Goals) in mind for 2012, just progress and completion. I am not suggesting you shouldn’t have a BHAG, but if you do, consider making it your only NYR because BHAGs require more than their share of time, energy, etc.
#2 I will have no more than five resolutions. The guy in the cartoon has already lost. There is no way for him to even remember, much less keep, such a long list of NYRs. I will set one goal in five areas: body, mind, soul, spirit and vocation (Hard Lessons). If I make progress in all five by December 31, then 2012 will be a great year.
#3 I will measure things that drive results, not just the results. For example, none of us ever lose weight by tracking how much we weigh. The daily weigh-in is a waste of time unless something is happening to actually drive weight loss. So, I intend to track what I am eating and how often I exercise, knowing these will drive the weight loss I desire.
#4 I will go public with my NYRs and ask someone to hold me accountable. Accountability is the key. Let’s be honest. It’s much easier to slack off on a secret NYR than a public one. Dottie (my wife) will be my accountability partner on some; some men I meet with regularly on others.
One final thing to remember: a good start is really important. Making progress is a great motivation to continue. If you are on track at the end of January, you will likely continue. Start slow and steady, then gain momentum as the year goes on.
By the way, I will let you know how I am doing on a regular basis. Hopefully, this will not be another “why bother?” year.
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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I watched in amazement as the Broncos did it again—coming back in the last 3 minutes from 10 points down to the Bears, then winning in overtime. It was their 6th straight win and elevated them to 1st place in the AFC West with 3 games to go. The 4th quarter of Bronco games has been dubbed “Tebow Time” because week after week—when all seems lost—they find a way to snatch victory from the jaws of defeat, led by their quarterback, Tim Tebow. The key words are “led by,” not “quarterback.” (Tebow is only the 14th ranked quarterback based on the NFL rating system.)
I am not getting on the Tebow as quarterback band wagon. I would rather have Tom Brady, Aaron Rodgers, or a healthy Peyton Manning. But I am on the Tebow as leader band wagon because he has four primary characteristics found in all great leaders.
In his mega-best-seller, Good To Great, Jim Collins identifies what he calls Level 5 leaders as all having two specific character traits: “personal humility…and fierce resolve.” He says, “Level 5 leaders are a study in duality: modest and willful, humble and fearless.”
According to the father of modern management concepts, Peter Drucker, humility is easy to spot by listening to the pronouns used:
“The leaders who work most effectively, it seems to me, never say ‘I’. And that’s not because they have trained themselves not to say ‘I’. They don’t think ‘I’. They think ‘we’; they think ‘team’….‘we’ gets the credit.”
Listen to Tebow. It is always we not me. He credits the coaches, his teammates, his family, friends and God, but never himself. If you hear “I” or “me,” it is something like “I am so proud to be part of this team” or “They make me look better than I am.”
When it comes to fierce resolve, Tebow is a 21st century Winston Churchill:
“We shall defend our island, whatever the cost may be, we shall fight on the beaches, we shall fight on the landing grounds, we shall fight in the fields and in the streets, we shall fight in the hills; we shall never surrender.”
Winston Chuchill (June 4, 1940, to the British Parliament)
As long as there is even one second on the clock, Tebow is all in, still believing the team can win.
President John Quincy Adam once said:
“If your actions inspire other to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”
Something you always hear about Tebow: “He works harder than anyone on the team.” He leads by example. His actions inspire others.
In Leading With The Heart, Duke Coach Mike Krzyzewski (more than 900 wins!) says he searches for “the heart on the team, because the person who has it can bring out the best in everybody else.” That is the fourth characteristic of Tebow’s leadership. Because of his humility, fierce resolve and example, the rest of the team rises and plays better—even the defense. Since Tebow became the starting QB in game six, the Bronco defense—in terms of points allowed—is playing as the 11th best defense in the league. Before Tebow, they were 30th. The offense is giving up just one turnover per game instead of the 2½ per game in the first five games. No wonder they have gone from 1-4 to 8-5!
I don’t know if Tim Tebow will ever silence his critics or win a Super Bowl in football. I do believe he will win a Super Bowl in life. He will accomplish something big and important because he is a Level 5 leader with humility and fierce resolve. He leads by example and his heart elevates everyone on his team. Those four things will work in football, business, church, or politics.
The Broncos play New England and Brady this Sunday. I suspect the Patriots will win. But this I know, until the clock hits 00:00, the Broncos will think they can win. Don’t change channels too soon, you may miss something exciting.
© Copyright 2011 by Dick Wells, The Hard Lessons Company
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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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