Monday, December 28, 2020

Think In 200 Year Blocks Of Time

During my early years of teaching workshops on the subject of stress management, I would often ask those gathered the following questions.


“Who remembers their grandparents?”


Nine times out of ten, everyone raised their hands in the air.


“Who remembers or knows anything about their parents?”


At this point, only a few hands would go up in the air.


This line of questioning led us into a discussion on maintaining perspective and understanding about how stress management techniques and perspectives were passed down from generation to generation.


When I reflect on this line of thinking decades later, I want to add another line of questions.


“Who here is a grandparent? How well do you know your grandchildren?”


I think the challenge is that most of us think about life in three to five year blocks of time. Some of us may even think about ten year blocks of time. This is our sense of the big picture.


But for me, I am thinking we need to embrace a larger perspective about life and history. For example, my father’s mother, who I knew as a child, was born in the late 1800’s. My father was born in the early 1920’s. I was born in the late 1950’s. Our children were born in the 1980’s. And our first grandchild was born this year. 


When I view the big picture on all these relationships, they easily will cover the span of two hundred years. My father’s mother influenced my father and myself. My wife and I influenced our children. And they will in turn influence their children. Thus, the passing down of perspective and understanding is an on-going process. 


As we come to the end of 2020 and look forward to a new year, let’s us pause and realize that we need to start thinking about life in two hundred years blocks of time. For we are being influenced by our history and we are creating history at this moment in time. We also are influencing the next generation as they will live their own lives and create their own history.  


In 2021, I hope we can pass on the best of what we have learned to date and inspire those who will move forward after we have passed away. Now is the time to instill hope, confidence, inner strength and clarity so that from this year forward people strive to be their best selves and to create a better world for all.


I look forward to seeing you and visiting with you in person in the new year!


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Monday, December 21, 2020

The Clock & The Compass

“Our struggle to put first things first can be characterized by the contrast between two powerful tools: the clock and the compass”, writes the late Stephen Covey. “The clock represents our commitments, appointments, activities - what we do with, and how we manage our time. The compass represents our vision, values, principles, direction - what we feel is important and how we lead our lives.”


It is so easy during these busy days to focus on the clock and to be consumed by al our To Do lists. Gifts to be wrapped and cards to be mailed. The holidays can just be another series of things to get done and people to see via Zoom or FaceTime. It just goes on and on.


I understand the power and importance of the clock. I was taught that on-time was late and early was on-time. Therefore, I honor my commitments and work hard to be respectful of my appointments. I consciously manage my time, making sure I have ample time for deep work and deep rejuvenation. 


Still, there are times when I get worn and overwhelmed. And this is when I turn to the compass, i.e. vision, values, principles and direction. Busy can not be the sole definition of success. I am not willing to sacrifice that which is most important to things that matter least. 


On my desk, I have my late father’s compass. I see it every day when I sit down to work. It reminds me what is most important. It always points true north. No matter if my days are busy, stressful or challenging, true north does not change. In short, my father’s compass calls me to be a true north person, always true to vision, principles and direction. 


During this holiday season, I encourage you to respect your commitments and to be clear about what is most important. With the struggle of busy days all around us, let us use wisely the clock and the compass. We can and we must lead our lives if we hope to create a better world. 


May this holiday season for you and your family be filled with many blessings, great joy, and good health. From my family to yours, we send you our best and look forward to when we can be together again in the new year.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Tuesday, December 15, 2020

Winter’s Coming Home

For me, the first sign of winter is the return of the cedar wax wings to the flowering crab apple tree on the south side of our house. They always show up this time of the year in large and small flocks to eat the little crab apple fruit. They flit and dance from branch to branch gobbling up the fruit.


When the sun is just right, I catch a glimpse of the little yellow spots on their wing tips which people think of as the “wax”. The two times I have seen them in the last week, it has been more grey and misty rather than sunny and clear  so I have missed seeing their wing tips. Still, it is a signal that winter is coming.


The second sign is when I start humming to myself the song “Winter’s Coming Home” which is sung by the monks of Weston Priory in Weston, Vermont. The opening verse goes like so:


Summer’s gone

Leaves are falling down and round

My window,

Crystal clear and certain,

That winter’s coming home.

Ah, yes again,

The mellow sun is cooler, days are short

And nights are longer by the fire

Of brothers’ love;

The evening speaks of hearts together now

That harvest’s done

And gone to rest, for winter’s coming home.


Before all the traditional Christmas songs and hymns burst forth into our home and hearts, this is the song that shows up in my consciousness and reminds me that there is a reason for this season, and I need to take time to remember it in the midst of my busy days.


The third sign of winter’s return is seeing the land covered with a thick frost just before the sun breaks the eastern horizon. The grass looks like it has been dusted with a light grey color in the early morning light. I know it will sparkle and quickly melt once the sun breaks through the morning clouds. Still, it is a reminder that this is the time to look for the miracles that take place each day.


Finally, the fourth sign is what is happening in the many perennial flower beds around our home. The brown leaves from the maple trees and the oak tree out front have settled in and around the perennial flowers. When I pause to enjoy their beauty, I realize that there are so many different colors of brown. Some places like the stalks of the sedum Autumn Joy display a reddish brown while the Siberian iris show a lighter color. The hostas have melted, for the lack of a better termed, and what remains is a more yellowish brown. So much to notice if one pauses and enjoys the stillness of the early morning.


And in and amongst all these leaves, plants are sleeping for lack of a better term. They are putting down roots until the ground is frozen solid. Then, they hibernate until the first signs of spring return to the prairie. And when spring returns with great joy, the land wakes up and remembers the sounds, the colors and shapes of summer. It is this fourth sign that reminds me of the importance of rest and rejuvenation.


Winter’s coming. I hope you keep your eyes open and witness the daily miracles it brings. I also hope it fills your heart with joy. Now is the time for rest, gratitude and renewed hope that better days are coming.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Monday, December 14, 2020

Asking For Help Is A Sign Of Strength

It is amazing how many leaders believe that they need to have all the answers and to always know what is the correct question to ask in every situation. There is an assumption that leadership begins and ends with an ability to be all things to all people no matter what is the situation. 


When one starts with this expectation, things always go down hill over time. No one has the capacity to solve everything and to figure out everything. There are days when problems surface that challenge even the best leaders and causes them to wonder what to do next. The phrase “being between a rock and hard place” is real and difficult. Still, some people in leadership positions charge ahead through these situations, damaging people, systems and culture with no regard to the impact or precedence that they are creating.


When I have been called in to coach a young executive through a problem of this nature, I have pointed out three things to all involved. First, to the supervising senior executive, I ask them the question, “Why did you let it get this bad before doing something about this problem? Why weren’t you coaching this individual on a regular and in-depth basis, preventing these problems from causing major damage to the company?” While this line of questioning is uncomfortable for the supervisor, I need them to understand that there is a difference between supervising people, coaching people, and checking in on people.


In simple terms, the goal of supervision is to observe, direct or oversee in the execution of a task, project or activity. Coaching, on the other hand, is a structured dialogue and development process to improve the professional competence to execute. Finally, as Marcus Buckingham and Ashley Goodall in their book, Nine Lies About Work: A Freethinking Leader’s Guide to the Real World (Harvard Business Review Press, 2019), write a check-in is “a frequent, one to one conversation about near-term future work between a team leader and a team member.” Here, the supervisor asks “two simple questions: What are your priorities this week? How can I help?” From my experience, successfully doing the above three actions on a regular basis often solves the problem of a young executive, believing they are the only source of all clarity and all action.


Second, I sit down with the struggling young executive and point out that the impact of their actions does not just create problems for them, but it also creates problems for all people in leadership positions over time. And this can damage the culture and, again over time, the strategic execution of the company.


For both the supervisor and for the person who is struggling, I remind them of one final important point, namely that asking for help and getting perspective when dealing with a problem is a sign of strength. Our challenge as people in leadership positions is to learn to recognize when we need to ask for help, and then to have the courage to actually ask for help. This may feel very uncomfortable to people in leadership positions, but I assure them that if they have hired smart and talented people within their organization, these individuals will welcome the opportunity to give advice, counsel and perspective. Being vulnerable and open to new ideas is not easy for many leaders but it is important to learn. Finally, leaders need to be open to receiving help. 


All of the above is possible to do but it requires those individuals involved to feel respected, safe and supported. This kind of work environment can be built over time if those involved remember that the precursor to asking for help is to create a healthy work culture where there is minimal politics, confusion and a very low turnover among good employees. 


This week, seek out regular coaching so you can learn how to ask for help and then receive it. When we are allies for each other, we can rise to the challenges before us and transform them into solutions that help the customers we serve, the company we work at, and the communities within which we live. And this is a powerful and important action to take.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Wednesday, December 9, 2020

Honoring Our Quiet Heroes

The other night, I finished reading Barack Obama’s new book called A Promised Land (Crown, 2020). It was very in-depth and fascinating in many parts. I was particularly moved by the section about the loss of his grandmother who he called Toot. As he wrote:


“She was one of those quiet heroes that we have all across America…. They’re not famous. Their names aren’t in the newspapers. But each and every day they work hard. They look after their families. They sacrifice for their children and their grandchildren. They aren’t seeking the limelight - all they try to do is just do the right thing…. there are a lot of quiet heroes like that - mothers and fathers, grandparents, who have worked hard and sacrificed all their lives. And the satisfaction that they get is seeing that their children and maybe their grandchildren or their great-grandchildren live a better life than they did.”


These comments really spoke to me given all we have experienced this year. I believe that there are so many “quiet heroes” out there right now in society who are showing up, paying attention and making things happen in big and small ways that are not never fully noticed or appreciated. 


In particular, I think of the hospital nurses and doctors who come to work every day, listen carefully and show compassion in the middle of this global pandemic. I think of the people who survived the massive forest fires out west and are now rebuilding their homes, businesses and communities in spite of such devastating losses. I think of the teachers and aides who are teaching and tutoring a wide diversity of struggling young students who are trying to figure out how to learn on-line. I think of the nurses and nurse aides in assisted living and long term care facilities who show kindness and attention while maintaining very detailed new protocols to keep everyone safe and healthy. 


The list of quiet heroes is long and extensive. They are making big and small differences in the lives of so many of us. It is time we paused and thanked them for the gift of their hard work, sacrifice, and commitment. They are role models for doing the right thing no matter the challenges.


We can and we will move forward together through this most unique time. Honoring our quiet heroes is an important next step in the journey.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Tuesday, December 8, 2020

Be Prepared For Winter

Recently, I visited with two members of my Kitchen Table Cabinet and we discussed the challenges of living through a global pandemic. Both are extremely skilled counselors who have many decades of experience working with people and families through very difficult dynamics.


I started out our time together asking about the impact of post-traumatic stress disorder on children, parents and families as this pandemic persists. The older of the two counselors smiled and said, “I think it will be quite high during the coming years but the ‘P’ in PTSD stand for ‘post trauma’ and the challenge right now is that we are not in the post stage. We are in the primary stress disorder stage which is very different than the post-traumatic stage.”


What followed was a discussion about primary stress experiences. I listened carefully. In simple terms, during the primary stage the impact of what is happening is on-going and in-depth. The pandemic is creating this on-going trauma and will be the foundation for PTSD to surface once we enter into a post-pandemic period. 


As they expanded on this, I realized that it will be critical for all of us to create a stress management plan for the upcoming January, February and March time period. In this plan, we need to define what we can do on a daily basis to decrease our stress. This will help us manage the increasing amount of daily stressors due to the pandemic. 


Second, we need to create new winter routines. We must get outside of the house and hopefully get into nature. Walking is a great first step. This is important because as anyone who has lived through a cold and windy midwest winter knows, cabin fever is real and challenging. This winter we could see an epidemic of cabin fever.


Third, we must define what are our priorities so that we do not loose track of them during the busy winter months. Reflecting on this, I am reminded of an old Vermont dairy farmer I met back in the 70’s, who told me his priorities were “God, family and then the farm.” This helped him keep things in perspective when the cow kicked over the bucket of fresh milk or smacked him in the face with a manure covered tail.


Finally, I encourage everyone to make plans to stay in touch with family and friends. While we must maintain physical distance to reduce the transmission of COVID-19, we can not become socially isolated. We all need and deserve loving support during the upcoming holiday season and through out the winter months until spring returns.


So, create your stress management plan during the next two weeks and then work the plan until the first daffodil blooms in the spring. Remember: we can and we will make it through this together.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Monday, December 7, 2020

Understand That New Ideas Are Fragile

In conferences rooms around the country or on digital platforms, people are meeting to discuss what needs to get done next year in order to be successful in the midst of this on-going global pandemic and volatile economy. Creative ideas are being presented and explored. People are seeking solutions at the service level and at the systems levels. Words like efficiency, effectiveness and resilience are being used by many around the table or on your flat screen. All involved hope to come up with a strategy that embraces complexity and delivers results.


When I visit with senior leaders before such meetings, I often remind them of two important truths. First, as Edward De Bono wrote many years ago, “You can’t dig a hole in a new place by digging the same hole deeper.” Or put another way, “what got you here won’t get you there.” There are times to preserve the core of a company and there are times to stimulate progress. They key is to understand the difference between what is essential within the company and what is expendable. The challenge is that most leaders think systems and structure are essential and that culture is expendable. They forget that the success of most companies’ business strategy is relationship centric rather than product or system centric. 


Second, I remind these same leaders of Packard’s Law, namely “no company can consistently grow revenues faster than its ability to get enough of the right people to implement that growth with excellence.” While on one hand, this seems like common sense, I have learned after many decades of doing this work that at times common sense is not so common.  


In a time period of continued instability, we need to focus on hiring and retaining the right people at all levels of the company. We then need to clearly state what is excellence and how we as a company expect this to happen at the operational level and at the strategic level. Daily action and on-going strategic choices need to reflect a deep level of clarity about excellence.


For me, excellence in action happens when we have the capacity to do disciplined problem solving which first starts with the ability to define a problem, namely technical, adaptive or crisis. Second, excellence in action requires exceptional teamwork and collaboration, namely the ability of two or more teams of people to function well over time and with complexity. And finally, excellence in action is based on the ability of the company to actively engage in continuous improvement. This is mission critical to success because customer needs are constantly changing. And we need to meet their needs even in the midst of a global pandemic and economic uncertainty.


This week, I encourage you to explore new ideas about how to move forward. I also encourage you to remember that new ideas are fragile. If we are to be successful over the next 2-3 years, we must build the infrastructure to support these new ideas. This is where a shared, mission driven culture and having the right people on your team are going to be critical to your success. Complexity is the new normal, and disciplined people are the key to unlocking potential and capacity.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Monday, November 30, 2020

Experience Is A Strength And A Weakness

“When confronted with the unknown,” writes Margaret Wheatley, “we default to the known.” This single sentence is a powerful insight into the world of leadership, and it is a challenging one too. 


Every day, people in leadership positions are confronted by complex problems and complicated issues. Every day, these same leaders try and figure out what is to be done next. Every day, they struggle to come up with unique and viable solutions. 


The problem is that every day, they draw on the one known that has always helped them though challenges before, namely past experiences. Some times these past experience are helpful, especially if they are dealing with a known technical problem. Then, these leaders draw on their experience and move forward. 


But 2020 has been a year filled with many unknown unknowns. We are the first generation in a long time who have had to deal with complexity of this magnitude. Our defaulting to the known may not actually be helping us move forward in an effective and resilient manner. Therefore, I believe we need to be mindful of our defaults and choose to create new solutions.


First, I think we need to slow down and schedule more time for reflection. Many of us have been attempting to move at the speed of light and solve all things in a hot minute. And to a degree, we have been successful. But the price is high when you do this month after month. Burnout or cynicism is inevitable.


However, when we take time to put down our cell phones, tablets and computers, we can pull back from the rush of minute to minute minutia and embrace the stillness. Here, we discover fresh perspective and insights. We can look at the bigger picture and figure out the trends around us. We grasp the wholeness and remember that life creates change through messy periods and quite a few troughs of chaos. Rather than being over stimulated, over worked and over scheduled, we can reclaim our calendars and our life, giving ourselves permission to think rather than to always react to everything and everyone around us.


Second, we need to seek out wisdom. And when we find it, enter into dialogue with these individuals. We can be physically distant and socially connected as a leader. It is in this space that we can think and share out loud our challenges. We can wrestle with big questions and big ideas to the point that we gain confidence about how to move forward.


This week, create time to step back from the mad rush to the next thing on the list, and schedule time to reflect, think, and plan. Then, seek out people who are sources of wisdom and engage with them on a regular basis. The combination of these two actions will be quite helpful over time.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Monday, November 23, 2020

History Is Always Being Created And Remembered

Thanksgiving is such a special time of year. It is when we come together, cook a big meal and celebrate. One of my favorite things during Thanksgiving is to hear stories about the past. As a former history teacher, I find the stories shared by our elders to be a fascinating window into life on the farm and our different communities. I always learn so much from what their lives were like all those many decades ago.


However, this year most families will not be gathering in person. Still, there will be good food and hopefully great pie, but the coming together of large groups of people will not happen as in previous years. And the sad part is that there also may be less story telling as a result.


With the realization that history is always being created and remembered, I choose this year to write down some of my history around Thanksgiving and to share it with our family. I also hope in the coming weeks to capture some of my favorite stories shared with me about life on the farm from years past and share them with my family too.


In the midst of these challenging times, there is much to be grateful for and many blessings to be counted. Each day we have an opportunity to decide where we shall focus. Each day, we can remember the following farm wisdom shared with me so many years ago: What you feed, grows.


This week, I encourage you to write down some of your stories around Thanksgiving and to share them with those you love. We may not be together in person as a whole family but we can be there in spirit and with the written word.


May your harvest be plentiful this year and all your family, friends and animals  stay healthy. Sending blessings from our table to yours.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Wednesday, November 18, 2020

What Is The Story You Are Trying To Tell?

Given the impact of this global pathogen called COVID-19 and the resulting levels of anxiety and uncertainty, I am thinking of the late John O’Donohue, an Irish poet, author and priest, who wrote “our trust in the future has lost its innocence… We now know that anything can happen from one minute to the next….. Politics, religion and economics and the institutions of family and community all have become abruptly unsure.”


As each week unfolds, I believe we are still learning how to sit with the discomfort of a global pandemic, and to be present to ambiguity it is creating. We know that there are going to be more “surprises” and more uncertainty in the weeks and months ahead.


I also think we have been so consumed by 2020 that we have forgotten that before COVID arrived, we were tired and worried from the events of 2018 and 2019. While those two years feel like a lifetime ago on one level, we need to remember that we entered into this global pandemic worn and exhausted from working so hard. Then, as COVID exploded into our lives at work and at home in March, we entered into an emergency response period followed in the late spring by this on-going adaptive period. Now, we look forward to the post pandemic period in 2021 or 2022, but we must be honest with ourselves and recognize that we will exit this period more exhausted and more overwhelmed by the continued pace and emerging new problems in a post-pandemic period.


And when I sit quietly with all that was before COVID and all that is happening now during COVID, I arrived today with a singular question: What is the story we as leaders are trying to tell?


Many years ago, Marcus Buckingham in his book, The One Thing You Need to Know ... About Great Managing, Great Leading, and Sustained Individual Success (Free Press, 2005), wrote: “To excel as a leader …. You must become adept at calling upon those needs we all share. Our common needs include the need for security, for community, for authority, and for respect, but for you, the leader, the most powerful universal need is our need for clarity. To transform our fear of the unknown into confidence in the future, you must discipline yourself to describe our joint future vividly and precisely. As your skill at this grows, so will our confidence in you.”


The line, “To transform our fear of the unknown into confidence in the future, you must discipline yourself to describe our joint future vividly and precisely”, really speaks to me this morning. We are afraid of the unknowns. We do not have much confidence in the future. And yet, as leaders, we must rise to the challenge before us and discipline ourselves to describe the future, vividly and precisely. The only was to do this is to pause and remember our history.


I believe we are so consumed by COVID that we have forgotten our history. We have forgotten our roots. We have forgotten our story up until this moment. We have forgotten our past strategic choices. The dangerous and potential outcome of this organizational and personal amnesia is that we might learn to live with limited long term perspective. This “land of forgetfulness” creates relationships which do not have the capacity to trust, deal with risks, or generate creative responses to the extraordinary and complex challenges before us all. 


As leaders, we need to understand that there are four kinds of history. The first is remembered history, namely the stories we learned from others. The second is lived history, namely the experiences we personally lived through. The third is shared history, namely the experiences we personally lived through with others. The fourth form of history is the current experiences that are happening right now which will become history - remembered, lived, and shared.  


All four of the above create the narrative we tell ourselves and others about what is happening now and the why it is happening in a particular manner. Still, we must be careful about the stories we tell ourselves and others. As Brene Brown in her very important and helpful book, Rising Strong: The Reckoning. The Rumble. The Revolution. (Spiegel Grau, 2015) wrote, “The most dangerous stories we make up are the narratives that diminish our inherent worthiness. We must reclaim the truth about our lovability, divinity, and creativity.”


Margaret Atwood, Canadian poet and novelist in her book, Alias Grace, reminds us “When you are in the middle of a story it isn’t a story at all, but only a confusion; a dark roaring, a blindness, a wreckage of shattered glass and splintered wood; like a house in a whirlwind, or else a boat crushed by the icebergs or swept over the rapids, and all aboard powerless to stop it. It’s only afterwards that it becomes anything like a story at all. When you are telling it, to yourself or to someone else.”


With the whirlwind of a global pandemic swirling around us, we need to set aside time to regularly pause, reflect and think deeply. Thomas Merton, one of the most influential monks, poet and spiritual writers of the 20th century wrote, “When I speak of the contemplative life I do not mean the institutional cloistered life, the organized life of prayer. I am talking about a special dimension of inner discipline and experience, a certain integrity and fullness of personal development, which are not compatible with a purely external, alienated, busy-busy existence. This does not mean that they are incompatible with action, with creative work, with dedicated love. On the contrary, these all go together. A certain depth of disciplined experience is a necessary ground for fruitful action. Without a more profound human understanding derived from exploration of the inner ground of human existence, love will tend to be superficial and deceptive. Traditionally, the ideas of prayer, meditation and contemplation have been associated with this deepening of one’s personal life and this expansion of the capacity to understand and serve others.”


We are living a “busy-busy existence.” Therefore we need to set aside time on a regular basis, and give ourselves permission to explore and understand the inner ground of our experiences in order that we can “describe our joint future vividly and precisely” and “transform our fear of the unknown into confidence in the future”. When we do this from a place of an “inner disciple and experience, a certain integrity and fullness of personal development”, it will result in speaking with authenticity, clarity and “inherent worthiness” of ourself and of others.


So, my challenge to you this week and throughout this month is to engage in a disciplined and regular process of reflection and contemplation. Then, you will be able to answer the question, What is the story we are trying to tell?, and share it well with others as we all prepare for 2021.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Tuesday, November 17, 2020

A Hard Year

This has been a hard year for me. I have experienced deep loss and great joy. I have struggled with worry, anxiety and the feeling of being overwhelmed by sometimes small and inconsequential issues.


At times, life has felt like the movie “Ground Hog Day”. Wake up, shelter in place, go to bed. A Monday is no different than a Saturday. A Wednesday is no different than a Friday. It is just another day of wash, rinse and repeat. 


I know that I am not alone with how hard this year has been.


During difficult times, some people fight and some people run. I think many of us have chosen the freeze option. Fight seems exhausting. Flight seems like a lost cause, because where ever we go, COVID will be there too. Therefore, freeze seems like the best choice. This ends up looking like napping on the couch or watching silly TV programs.


But, I have learned three things so far during this hard year.


First, I need to be patient with myself and others. We are all doing our best even if we do not feel like our best some days.


Second, I need to show loving kindness to myself and others. Anger and judgement do not help. Compassion and loving kindness are always the better choice.


Third, I need to continue striving to be my best self. Even in the midst of challenges and complexities, I can make healthy choices. And being my best self is a great first choice.


This has been a hard year for me, and it has been a hard year for many of you too.


On this day, remember that you are doing your best in spite of what is happening all around us. You are also enough just the way you are. And if that means sitting on the couch with a good book or watching some goofy TV for an extra hour, that’s okay. 


One day we will live in a post pandemic world. One day, we will see each other face to face. One day, we will hug our children and grandchildren, and not worry. One day, we will sit down over an incredibly good meal and share story after story about how we coped and how we survived in 2020. Now that will be a great new beginning.


Meanwhile, hang in there. Stay strong. Stay safe. Stay healthy. And know that together we can and we will make it through this.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Monday, November 16, 2020

Being Compassionate Is A Powerful Action

"It is time to become passionate about what is best in us, and to create organizations that welcome our creativity, contribution, and compassion”, writes Margaret Wheatley. “We do this by using processes that bring us together to talk to one another, listen to one another's stories, reflect together on what we're learning as we do our work. We do this by developing relationships of trust, where we do what we say, where we speak truthfully, where we refuse to act from petty self-interest.”


I am in 100% agreement with Margaret Wheatley. This is the time for us to come together to listen, share, reflect and learn. Given the challenges before us at this time period, we need more creativity, collaboration and compassion.


But many leaders do not consider compassion to be an essential  leadership skill. Instead, they focus on efficiency, speed, reading metrics and risk taking. While these are all important, I continually remind leaders that people commit to people before they commit to a plan. And, as the Gallup organization’s research shows us, people quit because of the relationship they have with their supervisor more than the relationship they have with the company. 


Over many decades of working with a wide diversity of people, teams and organizations, I have witnessed great leadership, highly adaptive teams and amazing outcomes. I have seen plans developed and executed flawlessly resulting in new and innovative solutions. And at the heart of it all are strong and healthy relationships amongst those involved. As Margaret Wheatley explains, “In organizations, real power and energy is generated through relationships. The patterns of relationships and the capacities to form them are more important than tasks, functions, roles, and positions.”


And from my perspective, the capacity to form these relationships begins with authentic compassion, namely the ability to respect a person’s journey including their challenges and their choices. When we realize how difficult life’s journey can be and recognize the complexity of choices people have to make over time, we start to build and maintain relationships based on integrity and understanding rather than judgement and self-interest.


This week, I challenge you to be more compassionate and to develop more relationships built on trust rather than positional authority.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Wednesday, November 11, 2020

From Independence to Interdependence

This morning, I keep thinking about the following quote from Brene Brown’s wonderful book,  Braving The Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone (Random House, 2017):


“… we don’t derive strength from our rugged individualism, but rather from our collective ability to plan, communicate, and work together. Our neural, hormonal, and genetic makeup support interdependence over independence.”


For me, this quote is a point of clarity and a challenge. While the word “interdependence” jumps off the page, our challenge as leaders is to create a process which brings together our “collective ability to plan, communicate and work together”. The former is the destination and the later is the pathway to it.


When I think about the process which will result in interdependence, I am reminded of a quote by Margaret Wheatley who wrote, “People only support what they create.” I think the key is to create a process which has significant ownership and understanding. And the first step in creating that process is to create a work environment for ownership where each person wants to be responsible for his or her own performance. 


This is the daily work of leadership. It is not the subject of New York Times best-seller books. Instead, it is the hard work of building collective trust, respect, and dignity into every process and every job. We must remodel it as leaders and not tolerate any behaviors that are disrespectful. In short, we must have the courage to take risks and to speak up in spite of the vulnerability and uncertainty that is taking place all around us.


Furthermore, we must have a level of empathy and compassion, recognizing that in the midst of this global pandemic and economic unrest everyone is doing their best even on their worst days. As Brene Brown reminds us in the aforementioned book, “perspective is a function of experience.” Given none of us have been through a period like this before, we must create perspective and maintain perspective. And that is going to take a great deal of listening and sharing. 


With open hearts and open minds, we can and we will move toward more interdependence. The first step is to create safe and healthy work environments where all involved can be their best selves and continually learn to be even better.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Tuesday, November 10, 2020

A Noble Profession

“It is possible, in this time of profound disruption, for leadership to be a noble profession that contributes to the common good”, writes Margaret Wheatley in her book, Who Do We Choose to Be? Facing Reality, Claiming Leadership, Restoring Sanity (Berrett-Koehler, 2017). “It is possible as we face the fearful complexity of life-destroying problems, to experience recurring moments of grace and joy. It is possible, as leaders of organizations, communities, and families, to discover deep and aiding satisfaction in our work if we choose not to flee or withdraw from reality. It is possible to find a path of contribution and meaning if we turn our attention away from issues beyond our control and focus on the people around us who are yearning for good leadership and engage them in work that is within reach. It is possible to use our influence and power to create islands of sanity in the midst of a raging destructive sea.”


Given how 2020 is unfolding, it is time for us to reclaim leadership as a noble profession. We can do this by focusing on the following four specific actions.


First, we need to understand that what is happening today reflects a series of decisions and choices over time. As I often point out to my students, what is happening today within a company reflects the strategic decisions made three to five years ago. The same goes for our lives at home and in the communities where we live. Our challenge now is to figure out what new choices we need to make so we are in better places at work and at home during the coming years.


Second, we need to focus on people and finding the good within them. While judgement keeps us distant from each other, showing unconditional and compassionate, loving kindness can bring us together. We need to remember that each and every person is doing the best they can given what they know and what they have experienced in life. We must remember that we belong to each other.


Third, we need to be people of integrity. We do this by treating each person we meet and the community within which they live with dignity and respect. We must strive to be better people and to remember that community, contribution and connections are “the very things that truly give life meaning and purpose”, as noted by Margaret Wheatley.


Finally, we must ask ourselves an important question: Why did I want to become a leader in the first place? Understanding our motives around leadership are critical to our reclaiming the nobility of leadership. Patrick Lencioni in his excellent book called, The Motive: Why So Many Leaders Abdicate their Most Important Responsibilities (Wiley, 2020), writes that many people in leadership positions “spend time and energy based on what they are going to get, rather than what they need to give the people they’re supposed to be leading.” They have forgotten that leadership is about doing the job, not just having it.


As he continues, “At the most fundamental level, there are only two motives that drive people to become a leader. First, they want to serve others, to do whatever is necessary to bring about something good for the people they serve…. The second basic reason why people choose to be a leader - the all-too-common but invalid one - is that they want to be rewarded. They see leadership as the prize of years of hard work and are drawn by its trappings: attention, status, power, money.”


As he concludes, “I believe it’s long past time that we, as individuals and as a society, reestablish the standard that leadership can never be about the leader more than the led…. leadership is meant to be joyfully difficult and selfless responsibility.”


When we as leaders reclaim and live up to the nobility of leadership, we must make mindful choices, role model integrity and compassion, and serve others with clarity of purpose. Then, we will “create islands of sanity in the midst of a raging destructive sea.” And this will make all the difference in our lives at work, at home and in our communities.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Monday, November 9, 2020

Respect The Journey

Recently, I have been thinking again about the following quote by Charles Swindoll:


Courage is not limited to the battlefield or the Indianapolis 500 or bravely catching a thief in your house. The real tests of courage are much quieter. They are the inner tests, like remaining faithful when nobody's looking, like enduring pain when the room is empty, like standing alone when you're misunderstood.” 


I think one of the greatest challenges for people in leadership and management positions is to realize that every day people all around them are being courageous and no one is noticing their actions. I know this because I have had the gift of listening to people share about their whole lives, not just their work lives. And when an individual chooses to be courageous, I have come to understand that there is always more to the story about what is happening.


For example, I was called in to coach a struggling executive who could not get her goals accomplished on time. Through active listening, I learned that she spent most nights supporting her daughter and her family because their child was recently diagnosed with cancer. She was exhausted, worried and distracted. 


Another time, I worked with an executive who struggled to build and articulate a plan for his department. Again, by creating a safe space for listening and sharing, I learned that he was coping with an older child who had serious addiction challenges. As a result, he was having a hard time focusing at work because he was so worried about what was happening at home.


Day after day, week after week, month after month, people all around us are working through huge life challenges. Some have been created by COVID-19 and others have been happening for quite some time.


I think the challenge is that we have failed to notice these challenges. As R.D. Laing noted, “The range of what we think and do is limited by what we fail to notice. And because we fail to notice that we fail to notice, there is little we can do to change, until we notice how failing to notice shapes our thoughts and deeds.”


Life is a journey and work is part of that journey. When we build healthy organizations, where there is minimal politics and confusion, a high degree of morale and productivity, and very low turnover among employees, then we create the opportunity for continual improvement, competitive advantage, and the foundation for great team work. And from this foundation, people can bring their whole self to work and support each other through life’s challenges, be they at work or at home.


At this time period, we can no longer fail to notice what is happening all around us. We need to support people who are being courageous, and to remember that there is always more to the story about what is happening. When we respect the journey, we build great organizations, filled with great people.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Monday, November 2, 2020

Hold The Center, Explore The Edges, Respect The Chair

Recently, I had the wonderful opportunity to sit down with someone who was new to senior level leadership. I was there to assist them during their transition to this new position. During our first visit, they asked me what they needed to do during their first one hundred days. While I could have offered numerous insights, I instead focused on just three. 


As I explained that morning, “there are three things that great leaders do whether or not they are in their first one hundred days or their last one hundred days before retirement. 


First, they hold the center. This is not a metaphorical action but a focused understanding that at the center of every great organization is a strategic nexus. This core is the combination of the mission, vision and core values and a strategic plan. The former is a non-negotiable set of parameters which defines what we do, why we do it and how we do it every day. It’s the foundation for everything. The purpose of the mission, vision and core values is to be a line of continuity through endless changes. The purpose of the later, namely the strategic plan, is to constantly stimulate progress. It is to push the organization out of complacency and to create a focused course of action. The unity of the two creates the capacity to rise to any and all challenges, be they adaptive, technical or a crisis.


Second, great leaders explore the edges. They understand that creative thinking begins at the edges of normal day to day operations. It starts with an individual or team who chooses to focus on emerging problems and needs of the customers or clients they serve. Once they understand these new and emerging needs, they then develop new solutions rather than just pushing the same products and services that existing customers are using. They are on the growing edge of successful evolution. And great leaders spend time understanding what they have discovered and figuring out how to scale it up.


Third, great leaders respect the chair. When one becomes a senior leader, we recognize that we stand on the shoulders of those who came before us. We are not the first person in the position and we will not be the last. We are merely stewards. And therefore we must respect the work of those who came before us and work in a respectful manner so that those who will follow us have the opportunity to do it even better. For when we respect the chair, we understand that the majority of our day to day work is to solve problems and to build capacity. In short, the work of a great leader is to create more great leaders. Because with an expanding pool of talent, any organization can grow operationally and strategically.


Being a leader is an exciting adventure. There will always be something new, different and challenging every day. The goal is to do your best every day. And this begins with holding the center, exploring the edges, and respecting the chair.”


This week, I encourage you to do likewise.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Wednesday, October 28, 2020

What’s Next?

During the last 90 days, I have spent a lot of time discussing strategy and strategic planning with senior executives and their teams. During these in-depth consultations, we have explored the future from multiple angles and possibilities. Over and over the main subject during these conversations has been what will the world be like after COVID. And during the process of listening and participating in these consultations, I have learned a few things.


First, during the early onset of COVID, we approached the future in a binary fashion, namely before COVID and after COVID. Many people thought that the entire problem would be short lived and then we would return to normal operations. However, as COVID has continued to move through society in multiple waves, more and more senior executives and their teams are no longer using the phrase “post-COVID”. They are beginning to realize that we may never fully eradicate COVID. Instead, we will have to learn how to live with it like we do the seasonal flu. Linguistically, this is being communicated by a switch from the phrase “post-COVID” to the phrase “post-pandemic”. This indicates a major switch in strategic thinking and acknowledges the on-going and adaptive nature of this problem.


Second, as the language about COVID has shifted, there is a rising understanding that the health and safety concerns expressed by employees and customers related to COVID will not go away anytime soon. Instead, even in a post-pandemic period where an effective vaccine has been widely distributed, many people will want to continue working and living in a bubble, carefully choosing who they will interact with on an on-going basis. The implications of these choices will be become more profound over time within the work place, our homes and our communities. 


One interesting element related to the continual concerns about living and working in a safe and healthy manner is the growing awareness among senior leaders that COVID is more likely the first of many global pandemics that we will experience during the coming decades. Therefore, as part of their development of strategy and their strategic planning process, many want to capture the lessons learned from this first pandemic because everyone involved knows that we must be better prepared next time and we must react more quickly. 


Third, all involved agree that the pandemic has changed and will continue to change our business models for quite some time. There will be greater use of digital platforms and working remote will become normal during the coming years. However, most executives do not believe that a 100% remote and digital workforce is the key to success. Instead, it will be a hybrid mix of work experiences, i.e. a combination of home office work and in-person meetings. 


The interesting thing for me as an executive coach and facilitator of strategic planning is how many times the subject of team work and teams has entered into these discussion when it comes to discussing the ongoing change in business models. All parties involved believe that teams are mission critical to strategic and operational success, but many privately are not sure if they are well prepared for a mix of analog teams (in-person meetings and office work) and digital teams (remote and digitally connected) to accomplish their goals. They also question if people in management and leadership positions are competent in leading both analog and digital teams. Still, everyone knows that they most create teams that are more resilient and adaptable during the next 1- 3 years.


Fourth, with the above in mind, many leaders are focused on how to do customer sales and service better during this pandemic and in the post pandemic time period. Traditionally, in the world of product sales and customer service, there have been three defining factors, namely time, price and quality. A customer gets to choose two out of the three, and then a company will deliver. For example, if the customer chooses time, i.e. fast, and high quality, then the customer will need to pay a premium price for the product or service. On the other hand, if the customer chooses low price and fast delivery, then more likely they would not be receiving a high quality product or service. 


Given the global pandemic, there is a rising awareness that there is now a fourth variable in the mix, namely ease of use. With the continued changes in business models, people are willing to pay more for ease of use. Having less stress during stressful times does make certain products and services more attractive to consumers. I will be curious to see how this fourth element will change sales and service during the next 1 - 3 years


Fifth, one of the interesting topics being discussed during strategic planning is education, schools, and childcare. All are in agreement that the work place will continue to be a mix of normal and hybrid operations, and now they believe schools will be, too. The impact of this hybrid education model and the resulting long term stress on employees and their families is deeply concerning, strategically and operationally. No one is coming up with simple solutions to this complex and complicated problem but all recognize that it is not going away any time soon.


Finally, there is a growing awareness that a return to normalcy in the post pandemic period will depend entirely on where you live in the country and your level of economic privilege. This, in combination, with the realization that issues related to justice, equity, diversity and inclusion within the work place and within the communities where we serve are also not going away. They have and will continue to change how we work for quite some time.


I am sure during the next 3 - 6 months I will learn a great deal more about what’s next in a post pandemic world. I hope the above is good food for thought for you and your team as you prepare for the future.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Tuesday, October 27, 2020

The Culture Is The Strategy

Over the years, I have spoken in front of many groups and stated that the culture is the strategy and the strategy is the culture in successful companies.

The longer I do this work, the more I am convinced that this is a powerful truth. 


I think the challenge for many leaders this fall is that they are not paying enough attention to culture within their organizations. Given COVID, some are focused on systems and others are focused on structure. Both of which are important given the current business climate. But the one thing that transcends systems and structure is culture.


Now I recognize that culture is the sum of behavioral norms created and accepted by those in leadership and management positions. I also recognize that culture can and should evolve over time as we become more enlightened about changes that need to take place, especially with the rise of consciousness in the areas of justice, equity, diversity and inclusion issues within society and the work place. 


Still, many managers and leaders take a hands off approach to cultural development and cultural maintenance. I am getting tired these days of people telling me “it is what it is” when it comes to their culture. They forget that managers and leaders need to proactively define the culture, i.e. the values and standards of the company, and make sure that it guides peoples’ decisions, be that at the operational or strategic levels. In short, we get so busy with our projects and deadlines that we forget to do the work of cultural definition. Instead, it gets pushed to the back burner and ultimately becomes forgotten. 

 

My hope is that we reclaim the concept that the culture is the strategy and recognize that we are consciously or unconsciously creating culture every day. Our words and our deeds as leaders have a tremendous impact. They can be a catalyst for positive action or a barrier to empowerment. It is time for us to wake up and to be more conscious about this work. It is time for us to be more thoughtful of how we treat each other, and how we speak to each other. We do set the tone as leaders when it comes to culture. And we must do a better job of it as we position our organizations for the next 2-3 years.


My challenge to you for the rest of this calendar year is to do two things. First, be your best self. Set a high standard of personal responsibility and accountability. Then, live the standard whether or not people are watching you. Second, hold yourself and others accountable for living up to the mission and core values, i.e. the cultural DNA of the organization. Over time, the outcome of committing to the culture being the strategy is that you will achieve better individual and collective results. And that is worth the time and effort to do this level of work.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257

Monday, October 26, 2020

Seek Wholeness Instead Of Fragmentation

“While management is problem-oriented, leadership is opportunity-oriented”, wrote the late Stephen Covey. “Instead of seeing a problem as segmented and mechanical - a broken part that needs to be fixed - it is seeing it as a part of a living, synergistic whole. It’s looking at what’s round a problem, what’s connected to it, what can influence it, as well as the problem itself.”


To me, Covey articulates perfectly the notion of seeking wholeness instead of fragmentation. He recognizes that one must define a problem, but also comprehend what is influencing it. By finding that which is connected to a problem one can see the problem and the “living, synergistic whole”.


Sometimes, I encounter leaders, who upon grasping the wholeness of a situation or problem, are overwhelmed. There are too many options before them and they struggle to embrace the complexity of the problem. They do not know where to begin.


At times like this, I remind them of the words of wisdom shared by the late Mother Theresa. As she explained, “I never look at the masses as my responsibility. I look at the individual. I can love only one person at a time. I can feed only one person at a time. Just one, one, one ... So you begin - I begin. I picked up one person, and maybe if I didn’t pick up that one person I wouldn’t have picked up 42,000. The whole work is only a drop in the ocean. But if I didn’t drop in, the ocean would be one drop less. Same thing for you, same thing in your family, same thing in the church where you go.  Just begin .. .  One, one, one.”


And this is what great opportunity-oriented leaders do, They begin with one person, one team, one department. They take it one step at a time. But they always keep the whole in mind. Clarity about a living and synergistic purpose guides them. They move forward and trust the journey.


This week, my challenge to you is to seek wholeness instead of fragmentation and to let inner clarity of purpose guide you along the way.


Geery Howe, M.A. Consultant, Executive Coach, Trainer in Leadership, Strategic Planning and Organizational Change Morning Star Associates 319 - 643 - 2257