Dealing With Status Quo

“More than anything,” wrote the late Warren Bennis in his book, Managing People is Like Herding Cats (Executive Excellence Publishing, 1997), “the difference between a leader and a manager rests on the status quo: Managers are willing to live with it, and leaders are not.” Truer words have not been written in quite some time.

Bennis in the same book builds on this insight. As he wrote, “Almost all organizations are presently caught between two paradigms in how they organize themselves and how they are led.” I think the challenge this coming fall is to determine if we have the courage to deal with status quo and then to change it. 

During the last three months, I have visited with many leaders and nearly all of them are fed up with the current status quo. They understand that “good is the enemy of great”, referencing an old Jim Collins phrase. They do not want to slip into a false sense of security and end up with mediocrity as being just fine.

Instead, they are eager to move themselves and their organization to the next level. The big question is “How do we do this?” In the aforementioned book, Bennis offers a unique first step. As he writes, “express the unspoken dreams of people.”

We know these unspoken dreams. People want to work at a company that respects and trusts them to do the right things for the right reasons at the right time. People want to do work that is meaningful and is making a difference in the world. People want a supervisor who knows them as a person rather than a position being filled. Finally, people want to be a part of a team that trusts each and works together.

These may seem like simplistic answers but they are not. Sometimes that which appears simple actually takes great effort, focus and attention over time. Simple is never easy. Quite a few of us have learned this from experience.

This week, as we all prepare for final quarter of 2021, reflect on whether or not you are willing to deal with status quo. If you are, then start figuring out what are the unspoken dreams of your people and how to turn them into reality.

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

The Person In The Mirror

“Success or failure in this job [as a leader] is essentially a matter of human relationships,” writes Robert Woodruff, former CEO of Coca- Cola Company.

John Maxwell builds on this idea in his book, Winning With People: Discover The People Principles That Work For You Every Time, (Nelson Books, 2004). As he writes, “All of life’s successes come from initiating relationships with the right people and then strengthening those relationships by using good people skills.”

“The most useful person in the world today,” writes Stanley C. Allyn, “is the man or woman who knows how to get along with other people. Human relations is the most important science in living.”

Maxwell notes that the first step to building, maintaining and strengthening relationships is to understand “The Mirror Principle”, namely “The first person we must examine is ourselves.” As he explains: “The first person I must know is myself - self-awareness. The first person I must get along with is myself - self-image. The first person to cause me problems is myself - self-honesty. The first person I must change is myself - self-improvement. The first person that can make a difference is myself - self-responsibility.”

I agree 100% with Maxwell and urge all of us this week to take stock of the person in the mirror. This is the pathway to becoming better people and better leaders.

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

Preparing For Transformation

“The challenge for leaders in every field is to emerge from turbulent times with closer connections to their customers, with more energy and creativity from their people, and with greater distance between them and their rivals”, writes William Taylor in his book, Practically Radical: Not-so-crazy ways to transform your company, shake up your industry, and challenge yourself (William Morrow, 2011). And I agree 100% with him.

As we move through this stage of the global pandemic, many senior leaders and their teams are deep into strategic level thought and planning. Most want to emerge strong, prepared and primed for more growth and profitability. Some are even using the word “transformation” as they prepare for the future.

When I participate in these strategic level dialogues, I am remind of the “Five Truths of Corporate Transformation” that William Taylor wrote about in the aforementioned book. As he explained:

- “Most organizations in most fields suffer from a kind of tunnel vision, which makes it hard to envision a more positive future.

- Most leaders see things the same way everyone else sees them because they look for ideas in the same places everyone else looks for them.

- In troubled organizations rich with tradition and success, history can be a curse - and a blessing. The challenge is to break from the past without disavowing it.

- The job of the change agent is not just to surface high-minded ideas. It is to summon a sense of urgency inside and outside the organization, and to turn that urgency into action.

- In a business environment that never stops changing, change agents can never stop learning.”

At this point, we know there is a lot of pent up demand in the market place and there will be a lot of competition to meet the needs of the market place. We also know there are high expectations for companies to offer outstanding customer service. High performance expectations are part of returning to normalcy.

With this in mind, all managers and leaders need to remember one other key point that Taylor made: “Forget the question, What keeps you up at night? The bigger question is What gets you up in the morning?  What keeps your people more committed than ever, even as the environment gets more demanding than ever?”

This week answer the above two questions for yourself, and then meet with your team to discuss your answers. Invite them to answer these questions, too. If we seek to be transformational in a post global pandemic world, we need all involved to be moving in the same direction and for the same reasons.

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

Timeless Insights

As someone who loves to read, I am always on the hunt for a good book. Recently, I have been rereading some books on leadership to glean new insights or to relearn some core concepts at a deeper level. One such book I have re-explored was written by Max De Pree and is called Leadership is an Art (Dell Publishing, 1990).

Inside this short book are three timeless insights that have gotten me thinking. The first insight is that leadership is the art of "abandoning oneself to the strengths of others”. Long before the Gallup Organization did their research on strengths based leadership, De Pree grasped the concept from his own experience. I love his use of the word “abandoning”. It makes the whole concept deeper and richer.

The second timeless insight is “The signs of outstanding leadership are found among the followers.” I have seen this numerous times and it is amazing. When followers are engaged, thoughtful, committed and collaborative, it is a reflection of a special working environment. And it points out that all involved have experienced some exceptional leadership.

The third timeless insight is the following: “the art of leadership: liberating people to do what is required of them in the most effective and humane way possible.” I love how De Pree frames up this definition as liberating people to do what is required. And at the exact same time, he defines the parameters for this action by the words “effective and humane.” Over the course of 35+ years, I have learned and relearned how powerful the action of liberation is for leaders and followers.

This is a wonderful book to read and I hope you touch base with it as we recover from this global pandemic. In the midst of our busy days, it is good to pause, reflect, and understand that there is the science of leadership, and that there is the art of leadership, too.

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

Leadership Requires Courage

Many years ago, I read a book by James Autry called The Servant Leader: How to Build a Creative Team, Develop Great Morale, and Improve Bottom-Line Performance (Prima Publishing, 2001). In it, he states that “Leadership in service of others requires a great deal of courage.” I have reflected on this many times because it is too easy to think of leadership as a reward for hard work rather than a responsibility. Patrick Lencioni wrote a whole book on the subject of leadership as a reward vs. a responsibility called The Motive: Why So Many Leaders Abdicate their Most Important Responsibilities (Wiley, 2020). It is nice to see two thoughtful individuals arrive at the same place.

Autry’s focus on service to others is defined by some very important characteristics of leadership. As he writes:

“Leadership is not about controlling people; it’s about caring for people and being a useful resource for people.

Leadership is not about being boss; it’s about being present for people and building a community at work.

Leadership is not about holding on to territory; it’s about letting go of ego, bring your spirit to work, being your best and most authentic self.

Leadership is less concerned with pep talks and more concerned with creating a place in which people can do good work, can find meaning in their work, and can bring their spirits to work.

Leadership, like life, is largely a matter of paying attention.”

As we enter the later part of this summer, I believe we need to sit down with young leaders who are new to the position of manager or leader and review step by step the above five sentences. We need to unpack them and explore what is the key idea within each sentence. We also need to discuss what are the core behaviors that make the idea a reality over time. This level of dialogue is vital if we expect this group to help position their teams and the company for a positive 2022 and 2023.

P.S. Now is the time to sign-up for the upcoming Fall 2021 From Vision to Action Executive Roundtable on September 22 - 23, 2021. We will be meeting in-person at the Brown Deer Golf Club & Conference Center in Coralville, Iowa. 

Here is the agenda for your review:

Wednesday, September 22, 2021

8:30 am - Arrival & Visiting Time

9:00 am - 10:15 am - How do we recover organizationally from a global pandemic?

10:15 am - 10:30 am - Break

10:30 am - 12:00 pm - How do we lead with strategic thinking rather than reactive operational problem solving?

12:00 pm - 1:30 pm - Lunch and Networking 

1:30 pm - 2:45 pm - How do we plan for the future when the future is still so unpredictable?

2:45 pm - 3:00 pm - Break

3:00 pm - 4:30 pm - How do we empower others to move forward during this recovery period?

4:30 pm - Adjourn

Thursday, September 23, 2021

9:00 am - 10:15 am - How do I recover personally and professionally from a global pandemic?

10:15 am - 10:30 am - Break 

10:30 am - 12:00 pm - Integration and Application

12:00 pm - Adjourn

The price for the full Fall Roundtable is $ 295.00.

The price for the one day Fall Roundtable attendance is $ 200.00.

Here is the link to the registration form:

https://chartyourpath.com/VTA-RT-Details.html

I hope you and your team are coming!

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