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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of February 9th
February 9, 2015 | No Comments »
The Album of Your Life
There are many times I receive subtle prompts from my past: a phone call from a dear old friend; a memory rekindled by a rediscovered photo; a moving letter buried at the bottom of my desk drawer. These prompts take me back to times and people from my past, seen now in a different light, allowing me to see how each added real texture and value to my life and to my leadership. Such is the album of your life. When we flip through it and search for the people and places shaping who we are now, we see how clearly each was in some way a handmaiden of our destiny. When these people and places entered our lives at the time, we saw them as simply static events with no real purpose. In retrospect, their value as teachers, mentors, and guides becomes more clear and more pronounced. However dimly these past experiences may appear now, there is no denying how vitally they influenced our path and the quality of our journey. This insight helps me remember that all moments are in fact key moments, and all encounters with people are rare opportunities to give and receive.
Junctions
When reflecting on our development as leaders, we can mistakenly believe our path is mostly linear. We like the fairy tale telling us, as long as we work hard, our journey will be mostly upward and uninterrupted. Sorry; it hasn’t been that way for me. In my experience, particularly with the benefit of honest reflection, I see how many times my development has been determined at junctions. So many times through my life I’ve stood at crossroads and faced pivotal threshold moments. Do I move forward or retreat? Go left or right? Speed up or slow down? Or maybe, just sit in the center of the crossroads and do nothing? Junctions represent thresholds we need to understand about ourselves. Often, if we ignore them now, life has a funny way of bringing them back to us again to face the exact same decision. Though I know with certainty I did not always make the wisest decisions at my personal leadership junctions, I know each one existed to teach me something. Moreover, I also know this: We are defined as much by the roads we have not taken as by the roads we have taken.
Pay Day
Why do you get up in the morning and go to work? Do you see yourself in a job or vocation? The answers to those questions reveal much about our true motives as leaders. If we see ourselves in a job, then let’s face it: we get up in the morning basically to make a living. We dutifully put in eight hours a day, five days a week, four weeks a month. Our minds may be fully engaged in our jobs, but probably not our hearts. Vocations, on the other hand, are the opposite; they reflect a deeper calling and have less to do with making a living and more to do with creating a life. The person going to a job does so because he has to. The person engaged in a vocation does so because he is called to do so. Leadership, understood correctly, is a vocation, not a job. If you are only in it for money, at the end of all your toil, money is all you will have. And when you finally retire, you will have to face this haunting question: Was giving all of my life worth the money? Leaders devote themselves to the vocation of leading, which is not measured in money, but in doing something the world needs done. Now that is a real pay day!
Daily Decisions – Lifetime Impact
I often get overly wrapped up in the end game; what will I become at the end of my journey? What will be the end state of our company’s strategy? How will things look over the distant horizon? The truth is, the answers to those questions are being determined now, each day and each moment, by the actions or inactions I take. Will I be brave today or a coward? Maybe not heroic on a grand scale, but at least in small ways, behind the scenes, which can make big differences in people’s lives. Will I be honest today or dishonest? Maybe not a major ethical matter, but just basic honesty in even the smallest things. Will I be a trusted friend today or an petty opponent? Maybe not in a life-saving way, but just authentic acts of generosity and companionship. Will I set a good example today or devolve to my lesser angels? Maybe not on the big stage, but a noble example nonetheless. What I realize is, some-day is really determined to-day. Whatever we ultimately make of ourselves and our organizations is being determined today through small, often unseen acts. Maybe, they are not so small in the end. Carpe Diem!
Where Your Legs Take You
It is important for leaders to study leadership and wrestle with its essential truths. However, in doing so, we have to be careful not to become too introspective. It is tempting to get pulled into an increasingly academic mindset, where one becomes paralyzed by seeking perfection or some imagined ideal such as: What is the ideal leadership style? What are the most prized leadership traits and principles? If we are not careful, we can spend all our time analyzing and assessing, to the point where all we are left with is an academic philosophy of leadership. If we really want to know who we are as leaders, our true self, simply look to where your legs take you each day. Look to where, and to what, you move. Wherever you are naturally drawn– there is your authentic leadership. So, if you want to know with clarity who you are as a leader, look to where and to what you move. Where ever your legs take you, that is who you are as a leader.
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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of February 2nd
February 4, 2015 | No Comments »
Footprints
Modern society places too much emphasis on success, and increasingly, a narcissistic type of success pointing more to the individual than the quality of the accomplishment. I have long believed the highest form of mastery in leadership is significance, not success. Let’s be honest; one can become successful today without true inner greatness or lasting virtue. True significance, on the other hand, can only be seen after one has departed, bestowed by others who have seen and benefited from the leader, and cannot be realized without inner mastery. Success simply measures how far you go in this moment of time; significance measures how you go far and is timeless. Great leaders are like way finders; they guide us by standing shoulder-to-shoulder in pursuit of deep meaning and high purpose. And often, when we need great leaders most, they can seem far away from us, until we realize this truth: They have gone ahead of us leaving trustworthy footprints in the sand for us to follow. Footprints are the telltale signs of significance and reflect in their imprint the leader’s sacred obligation to give back more than he took.
The Dialect of Leadership
I have long believed leadership, like any form of master craft, is more caught than taught. Why so? Because to master leadership one first has to yearn for it, much like a master skipper yearns for the sea. Additionally, each student, armed with an apprentice’s mind, must constantly wrestle with the mysteries of leadership. Each person must appropriate leadership’s truths for themselves. Think of leadership like a language without consonants: its dialect is always somewhat hidden. Leadership is not something we can reduce to a list or formula, memorize, and then recite back. The dialect of leadership is often veiled and subtle, more like a story or parable, and always pointing to a truth beyond just the surface words. To understand and then speak the language of leadership, we must constantly delve into its meaning, plumb its purpose, and fill in the missing consonants ourselves. The language of leadership, and its deeper truths, only become clear to us when we wrestle with it and extract its meaning for ourselves. No one can teach you leadership; you must catch it yourself.
The Language of Leadership: Going Extinct?
Classically, leadership had its own language and lexicon built on solid words and heroic implications. In many ways, this language pointed to realities beyond the mere words and needed no translation; the words were alive and real. Consider for a moment the following words: sacrifice; reverence; responsibility; accountability; judgment; discernment; wisdom; delayed gratification; and optimism. Classically, no one would ever conceive of heroic leadership without speaking of heroism through the prism of these words and this kind of language. Today, I fear this language is becoming threadbare. We either have forgotten the power of this language or, through atrophy, the words have become either meaningless or, worse yet–seen as banal leftovers from a bygone era. So it is wise for leaders to revitalize the language of leadership by constantly speaking about the virtues of sacrifice, responsibility, accountability, and judgment. Why? Because the more we use these words correctly, the more the realities these words represent come to life, and the more they will animate our lives and our leadership.
A Helping Hand
When I reflect on my personality style, I see clearly my tendency to think I can conquer anything alone if only I apply enough determination. I have a tendency to believe I can steel myself against the headwinds of life, and therefore, I can endure and overcome. The problem with this mindset, taken to an extreme, is this: The same inner steel hardening me against life’s tests and trials, if not properly understood and wisely governed, can also steel me from being taught the lessons I need most to learn. We all can fall prey to this lone warrior paradigm; thinking we can survive alone and succeed on our own. But, however far this lone warrior style gets us in the end, it fails in this key regard: We will never become great alone. What we need most, to become truly significant as men and women, and to become heroic in our life’s purpose, can only be had as a gift given by others. When we operate as lone warriors, we lead with a clenched hand. When we lead heroically, we lead with an open hand. A clenched hand cannot accept and collaborate. Only an open hand can accept a helping hand.
Pay Attention
Leadership is more caught than taught. Once we have developed an inner yearning to become heroic leaders we often catch leadership lessons through experiences and the example of others. In this way, leadership is an “ah ha!” vocation. Its lessons, when initially encountered, often get filed away in our unconscious until, often by chance, we encounter something that pulls the lesson into our consciousness and we recognize it. Then–Ah ha! It is because of this nature I constantly remind myself to pay attention. Pay attention to yourself and your impulses, intention, and motives. Pay attention to others and their mood, needs, and fears. Pay attention to your surroundings and the ever-flowing river of change. Pay attention to the learning moments availing themselves daily, often in the smallest things. Today, more than ever, it is far too tempting, and because of technology, too easy, to cruise through the day on auto pilot. But in auto-pilot we become numb and disconnected. Great leaders turn off auto pilot and embrace each day as new. So I remind myself: Pay attention!
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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of January 26th
January 26, 2015 | No Comments »
Triumph and Disaster
I suppose it’s natural we mostly refer to successes when studying leadership. We revere champions and, as such, we are inclined to study the how and why of victory. But much is to be learned about leadership in studying disaster; maybe more. What I find most compelling about leadership, when it comes to the extremes of triumph and disaster, is not what led to each outcome, but instead, how much did each outcome change the nature of the leader? I have long believed the nature of a leader is best seen in the extremes of victory or defeat, because extremes present a crucible capable of stripping away any false masks. Who we are as leaders will be tested most directly during highs and lows, but if we are centered and anchored–these extremes should not change who we truly are. In this vein, I admire this wisdom from Rudyard Kipling: “If you can, meet with triumph and disaster, and treat these two imposters just the same.” Winning and losing are imposters; who we are inside endures.
All Days Are Key Days
In pursuit of masterful leadership there’s a tendency to believe there exists a key date just over the horizon when we finally arrive at mastery. We tend to think of leadership excellence as an exact destination with a finite time and place, where we might say: I have arrived. I call this the illusion of “some day” leadership (some day, when I have all the experience and training, then I will be a great leader). This illusion incorrectly focuses on a future day when all the stars align, all conditions are right, and a magic switch turns on. Sounds nice, but excellence doesn’t work that way. Here’s a more truthful reality about leadership excellence: All days are key days; all moments are key moments; all events matter. Each moment is key because within that moment resides a teacher; a vital opportunity to experience the feeling of leading and internalize its lessons. So yes, all days are key days on the path to excellence.
Lead Like There’s No Tomorrow
Lead now because soon enough it will be time to go home
Lead now because soon enough it will be time to go
Lead now because soon enough it will be time
Lead now because soon enough it will be
Lead now because soon enough
Lead now because
Lead now
Lead
Lost and Found
Reflect on your life and your path as a leader. When you look back at your journey you see highs and lows, victories and defeats, joy and pain, smooth and rough. The texture of the leadership path seems to contain these contours for everyone, just in differing degrees and situations. What I find most interesting, though, is what appeared to be true at the time of these highs and lows looks now, in retrospect, to be much different. The highs, when experienced, were heady stuff, and we surely felt they had much to do with our excellence. In hindsight, we see the highs had more to do with our teams, some luck, and a good dose of grace in most cases. The lows, when we experienced them, hurt a lot and seemed like total inconveniences. Now we see those setbacks much differently; they were necessary teachers, and with the passage of time, their lessons guide us more fully than any victory. My point in this? What is lost is nothing compared to what is found. Our setbacks and defeats, compared to wisdom gained through the crucible, would barely fill a thimble cup.
Yearning
I am often asked, “What is the best way to teach a young person leadership?” I think the best place to start is to cultivate in the person a yearning to be a great leader. For example, say we wanted to teach a young man to be a master sailor, or a young woman to be a master dancer. We could start with some technical training like how to rig a sail or how to properly fit dance shoes. But a far better place to start would be to teach each of them to yearn to be excellent; for the man how to yearn for the sea, for the woman how to yearn for the stage. Yearning becomes the unforgettable fire strong enough to sustain the person along a life-long path of development. Yearning becomes the internal true north capable of setting the right heading, azimuth, and vector. When mentoring young leaders we have two basic choices we can select; teach them what leaders do, or, teach them who leaders are. I believe we must start with the latter (who leaders are), and we can do this best by creating a yearning to become masterful leaders. Yearn for the sea and you’ll learn to sail. Yearn to guide others towards excellence and you’ll learn to lead.
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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of Jan 19th
January 20, 2015 | No Comments »
An Old Home
Growing up in the Boston area I recall many colonial-era homes in my neighborhood. The character of these old homes always strikes me, not simply for their architectural appeal, but for their longevity. Great leadership has much in common with the upkeep of old homes in this crucial way: foundations are in need of constant renovation. Foundations of leadership, both personal and organizational, contain the cornerstones of strength and excellence, muck like the foundation of a home. These cornerstones—things like ethos, meaning, purpose, and character—can atrophy unless maintained by a devoted caretaker. The silent artillery of time, as Lincoln referred to atrophy, can chip away at once solid foundations, leaving them, like a house in disrepair, as only faint memories of their once vibrant condition. Great leadership, we learn over time, is more a case of renovation than creation. It is therefore a leader’s sacred obligation to attend to foundations–the cornerstones of excellence—to ensure our leadership and our organizations survive the silent artillery of time.
The Off Season
Watching the College Football playoffs this year, I heard a TV commentator say, “Champions are crowned at the end of the season.” Though true, this statement misses a more important point: Champions are made in the off season. And so it is true with great leaders. It is in the off season, when the lights are turned off, the stadium empty, and no one is looking, where hard work and the crucible of preparation forge the soul of a champion. In so many ways, the outcome on the field of play is actually determined months before the team steps into the arena. As leaders, our performance in the present moment will be determined, by and large, by actions taken or not taken months or years before. So it is wise for all leaders to heed the call of the off season, to pay our dues on the practice fields and along the dusty road of preparation, so we are ready for prime time when it comes. Yes, Champions may be crowned at season’s end, but they are made in the off season.
A Sofa or a Springboard
Leadership is the blending of vision and action. Yes, leaders must first see where they are going before they can effectively prosecute their plan. Vision is the necessary first step. The potential pitfall of vision and planning, however, is this: A completed plan can become like a sofa; an all-too-comfortable place to pause, sit and admire our position, and luxuriate in plans we’ve made. Great leaders recognize this pitfall and quickly move into bold action. Through initiative, they turn the sofa into a springboard. Leaders must learn to value action as highly as vision, and likewise, leaders must nurture the courage to move with conviction once an azimuth of march has been selected. Getting from here to there isn’t about perfection; it is about moving in about the right direction with will and purpose and then, making agile course corrections. Great leaders choose the springboard over the sofa through bold initiative and decisive behavior.
Collapsing Stars
I read this interesting fact yesterday: In an average day, a young child laughs over 100 times; an adult, 5 times. What happens to us along the arc of our lives to diminish this internal optimism? The pressure of work? Stress? I am not sure, but I do think there is a lesson here for all leaders to consider: Who we are, and what we project, matters to those around us. Our inner world is much like a star. If we cultivate a positive and rich inner life, we will burn brightly, and positively illuminate our surroundings. If we devolve into negative emotions of anger, pettiness, and cynicism, we become like a collapsing star, pulling everyone in our orbit towards an increasingly small, toxic, and diminished core. I have seen both types of leaders—those who shine brightly and illuminate the path to excellence and elevated performance, and those whose inner dimness sucks the life out of a group. Leadership is a sacred obligation, and those fortunate enough to lead others should consider carefully the core of their inner world and the quality of their inner light.
Horizons
Leadership is the story of how we go from here to there. And let’s face it; many of us don’t want to leave here to go anywhere. It takes a masterful leader who invites us to go on a journey of growth and change. And in this movement we are pulled towards a distant horizon initially measured in miles and great expanses. This is the stuff of leadership vision, end states, and strategy. Distant horizons are necessary as the broad aiming points of our collective azimuth; the sunlit uplands to which we collectively aspire and move. But not all horizons are measured in broad strokes. Once we start moving, horizons are often measured in feet and inches. This is the stuff of tactics and execution. This is the realm where everything matters, even the smallest details and the finest lines. So as we move from here to there, it is wise for leaders to embrace horizons, both distant and near, and never forget that victory is won, quite often, when horizons are measured in feet, not miles. Small things matter.
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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of January 12th
January 12, 2015 | No Comments »
Illumination
Great leaders are beacons; they illuminate the present realities while also shining light on the path to future end states. And the source of their illumination, burning at high candle power, is their self-leadership and self-mastery. Great leaders are able to take a flickering light from the past, turn it into a flame, which in the future shines across the broad trajectory of possibility. Conversely, poor leaders possess no such inner illumination. Poor leaders lack self mastery, and as such they act instead as black holes, absorbing into themselves any positive spirit and or any elevating purpose. Illumination simply cannot escape a poor leader’s negative gravitational pull. The light we emit as heroic leaders is meant not for our own use, but to light the way for others. The question we must therefore always ask ourselves is this: Are we generating illumination?
All Hat, No Cattle
I recently re-watched one of my favorite movies —The Outlaw Josey Wales. Whatever one feels about the fictional character Wales, he was certainly a person who “walked the walk” and didn’t simply “talk the talk.” This reminds me of a timeless truth of leadership and excellence: action and substance matter more than words and pretenses. Heroic leaders are committed to meaning, and project their high purpose through a compelling vision. More importantly, they execute their vision through right action. Conversely, poor leaders often fake high purpose through superficial means and thin gestures and never complete their goals because they fail to take action. Poor leaders are like the city slicker who wants to be seen as an authentic cowboy; they are all hat, no cattle. Heroic leaders, via real tests and trials and a commitment to authentic living, learn to actually become a cowboy. Great leaders, like the fictional Josey Wales, walk the walk as people of substance and authenticity.
Rule Shows the Man
Aristotle often quoted the Greek proverb, “Rule shows the man,“ which means: No one knows with certainty how virtuous—or corrupt—a person might be until he holds office and has power. This has great relevance to leadership as I have long thought the greatest window of a leader’s true character, their real self, is to see them at either their lowest or highest points. It is during these two extremes, depression and elevation, where the external pressure is high enough to strip away any false masks and reveal the true nature of a person. Great leaders, ones possessing self mastery, actually become better—more virtuous—in times of loss or victory. They are the same person with or without power. Weak leaders, on the other hand, because they lack self mastery, become more vicious and bankrupt when they either lose or gain power. The greatest test of a leader, the real litmus test of heroic character, is what one does with power.
Wilderness Years
What becomes clear when studying heroic leaders from the past, almost without exception, are periods in their lives of loss and retreat from the lime light. I think of these phases as wilderness years; stretches of time characterized by feeling off track, discouraged, and beaten. Presidents Teddy and Franklin Roosevelt, Churchill, King, Lincoln, Gandhi—they all had wilderness years. And what is clear in studying these people, with the aid of retrospect, is this truth: The wilderness years transformed them and defined their greatness. It is during times of loss when leaders often feel enough pain to finally welcome the break, which then leads to the breakthrough. It is as if the wilderness periods, much like an abyss, provide a defining moment, an internal crucible, able to either destroy or transform the individual. I have found myself likewise in such wilderness years as I look back across the arc of my life, and I now realize these wilderness times are often the greatest periods for growth and renewal.
The Only Time to Give In
I often reflect on the necessity of resilience in pursuit of heroic leadership because I see a resolute character, both personal and organizational, to be central to enduring excellence. I cannot find one historical example of supreme achievement or lasting significance not built up by, and sustained through, deep reservoirs of resolve. Think here of Winston Churchill as he exhorted his countrymen during WWII with these words: “Never give in. Never give in. Never, never, never give in.” However, in contemplating this admonition, I do believe there is one circumstance when leaders should give in: In response to Honor’s call. We give in by hearing honor’s voice and by giving over to the better angels of virtue. So yes, we must remain resolute and determined to achieve excellence; but equally, we must occasionally give in by not only hearing, but also answering, honor’s call.
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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of January 5th
January 5, 2015 | No Comments »
What Do You See?
There are many ways one might distinguish heroic leaders from average leaders. Today, when reflecting on this question, this conclusion came to my mind: Where average leaders see mud, great leaders see gold. Heroic leadership does not ignore the brutal truth or the hard reality of our current condition (the mud); candor is necessary to be truly heroic. However, where the average leader becomes mired in the mud, emotionally and physically stuck, the heroic leader, through vision and conviction, sees how the mud can be transformed into gold. In my life, and the many times I have been in the mud, I recognize now the very real truth of the following sage wisdom: Wherever one falls, there lies your teacher. The mud exists and frustrates us, yes; but the mud also contains within it the opportunity for a breakthrough, and a break out. The mud exists to teach us something, as individuals and groups, we desperately need to learn. So yes, where average leaders see mud, great leaders see gold. The opportunity lies within the problem; the difference is how we see it. So, what do you see—mud or gold?
Between
In a recent leadership seminar I was asked this question: “What is the time when a leader develops most, before or after a challenging assignment?” My answer was: Between. It is between starting and finishing, between success and failure, between joy and sorrow, between high and low–where a leader’s greatest growth and transformation occurs. When we are between we are most challenged, our character put to the test, and our true Self exposed. “Before” is important as a time of readiness and preparation, and “after” is important as a time of reflection and garnering lessons learned. However, it is when leaders are between the rock of certainty and the hard place of doubt when the pressure of tension tests us most. If we are wise, we allow this pressure to convert and strengthen us.
Fighting Spirit
I write frequently about fortitude, resilience, and grit. Why? Because a fighting spirit is essential for building championship cultures and is inherent to heroic ambition. As I learned as a US Marine, there is no better friend or fiercer competitor than one imbued with a fighting spirit. I use the term fighting spirit in its classic form; reflective more of attitude than a necessarily physical application. Leaders possessing a fighting spirit are tenacious, highly optimistic, hardy, and able to face tough situations with alacrity and courage. But make no mistake, a fighting spirit does not emerge naturally; it must be intentionally cultivated in our self and our teams through constant preparation and rehearsal. A fighting spirit does not deny we are surrounded by challenge and risk; it sees the hard truth. But it inspires us to take this right action: Attack in a different direction until we find a way to succeed!
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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of December 29th
December 29, 2014 | No Comments »
The Smooth and The Rough
Leadership is a uneven path strewn with victories and defeats, broad avenues and twisting lanes, steep inclines and easy downgrades, dark valleys and sunlit uplands. As leaders we must learn to master both the smooth and the rough. During smooth times, when our team is winning, we must celebrate excellence, give credit where credit’s due, sustain positive momentum, and infuse our people with alacrity and spirit. When times get rough, when we’ve taken some hits and, per chance, lost; this is when true character and heroic leadership must ascend. During gloomy periods leaders must pierce the darkness with rays of renewed energy, a truthful dose of hard reality, and gritty optimism. Leaders must project to their people, in word and deed, this vital sentiment: I have your back in adversity even more so than in good times.
Willpower
That leadership is the blending of thought and action is fundamental. So, what quality distinguishes Heroic leaders in this regard? Willpower. Great leaders are fiercely willing: willing to learn; willing to sacrifice; willing to master themselves; willing to remain resolute against long odds. What is true in leadership is also true in any field of struggle, be that war, sports, or business: victory is usually gained through superior willpower. Too often leaders devote too much time to planning and dreaming and become paralyzed in action. Once a leader is confident in an azimuth of direction, the characteristic most essential to achieving excellence from that point forward is the will to succeed. Leaders, through constant vigilance and willpower, apply great exertion to bend fate towards their chosen trajectory.
History
Reflecting on great leaders from the past is one of the best ways for us to discern the timeless truths and trustworthy patterns of excellence. Though we see in each historical figure a separate and distinct person, we also recognize, in spite of this uniqueness, a common path of development. I have noted before my firm belief that we do not read history to go back in time; rather, we read history to bring its wisdom into us. We read history to pull the lessons of the past into us, but oriented to our modern realities. Leaders must have a deep appreciation for the arc of history, what I call the “grand parade” of time, to correctly see the greater patterns of truth from which excellence emerges. More importantly, today’s leaders should never forget that we study history not simply for its broadening and expanding affect, but also to remind us of this more pressing reality: We are making history, right now, by virtue of our leadership action or inaction.
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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of December 22nd
December 22, 2014 | No Comments »
Collateral Benefit or Collateral Damage?
Leadership is influence. The moment one walks into a room with other people, a leadership affect is rendered. The only question at that moment is: What affect? Leaders will, as a function of their self-mastery or lack thereof, create either collateral benefit or collateral damage. Reflect for a moment on great leaders you’ve known. Whenever they moved into leadership action, regardless of circumstance or condition, their affect was always collateral benefit; they made others better and made situations better. Alternatively, think of weak leaders you’ve known. When they enter the exact same room and engage the same people, the affect is collateral damage; people are diminished, the situation becomes worse, the atmosphere becomes toxic, and the future becomes bleak. Great leaders, by virtue of self-mastery, self-regulation, and self-control, consistently create collateral benefit.
Window Dressing
In assessing performance, both personal and organizational, it is tempting for leaders to believe their press clippings instead of honest truths. We can fall prey to “window dressing:” Fancy pretenses that, on the surface, look and feel fine, but upon closer examination, are mere facades to the reality lurking under the surface. Window dressing takes many forms. Individually, leaders can adorn themselves with ornate titles, swank offices, and luxury perks. Organizationally, window dressing manifests as slick advertisements, bloated mission statements, and luxurious equipment. So, what is the problem with window dressing? It almost always operates at the detriment of our integrity—personally and organizationally. Great leaders shun window dressing and focus instead on the window—built on foundational excellence and professional simplicity.
How Leaders Grow
How do leaders grow? I cannot think of a better answer than this: Leaders grow whenever they are thrown outside their current terms of reference and learn to adapt. When we are in our comfort zone of known rhythms and known conditions we settle into leadership auto-pilot. In this comfortable zone our leadership can, and almost always will, plateau. In my life, all of my leadership growth spurts came whenever I was thrown off balance. Life has a way of nudging us out of our comfort zones, calling us to leave home, and it is often these periods of imbalance that become the crucibles hot enough to convert us. When we are thrown outside our known references we are like the aspiring swimmer thrown suddenly into the deep end of the pool; we must grow to first survive, and then, thrive. Leadership development is constant movement between known and unknown. And it is in the unknown, where all reference points are lost and our comfort zone is broken, where we often transform and grow the most.
The Need to be Seen and Heard
Recently I saw a classic photograph of Winston Churchill from WWII. The photo showed him standing atop a pile of rubble during the height of the Nazi blitz on London, surveying the scene with his jaw jutted forward in defiance, cigar clamped tight in his mouth, and his eyes trained forward with resolution. This photo reminded me of this timeless truth: Leaders need to be seen and heard. Most of us will never find ourselves on Churchill’s grand stage. But all leaders, regardless of circumstance, must communicate with those they lead in a way that clarifies, inspires, reassures, and reminds. Real leadership communication cannot be done virtually via email or proxy. Leadership is an affect, and the affect we seek is positive influence. To create unity, momentum, resolve, and esprit, leaders must emerge regularly from their private dwelling, much like Churchill did every day, gather physically with those they lead, and be seen and heard. Yes, Sir; being there matters!
The Unyielding Strength of Dreams
A key quality distinguishing great leaders from average ones is their ability to create a compelling vision: Who we are, where we are headed, and why it is important we go there. Leadership vision is admittedly pure art, and yes, some people are born with this ability, but we all learn to discipline ourselves to become better at this vital capability. Why is vision important? Because of the unyielding strength of dreams! When groups galvanize around a collective dream of who we can become, there is a magic in that alchemy, and it is that magic that defines champions. Reflect for a moment on great champions; sports dynasties, long-enduring Fortune 500 companies, great civilizations or cultures. What they all shared in common, the real catalyst of their supreme excellence–was a dream of what they could become. And the genesis of that collective dream was a leader’s vision from the coach, the CEO, or the Head of State. Think here of John Wooden and his UCLA dynasty as but one example. The “Wizard of Westwood” had a vision of greatness, not merely X’s and O’s. He understood the strength of dreams.
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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of December 15th
December 15, 2014 | No Comments »
How You Go Far
The other day I was asked this question by a young leader: “What’s the best way for me to go far as a leader?” After some thought, I answered this way: It isn’t really about how far you go as a leader; it’s about how you go far. The ultimate test of leadership is not the final tally of personal rank, status, or position, or how high up the corporate ladder we climbed. Instead, the ultimate test is the quality and consistency of our character during the entire climb. The best focus for young leaders isn’t the corporate ladder, but rather– the climber. It is far more important to master oneself, developing high character, virtue, purpose, and fortitude, than to focus on the key success nodes along a career path. For me, this distinction is crucial because it rightly distinguishes between success and significance. Success measures how far you go, where significance measures the more supreme metric: How you got there and what you left behind for others. In the end, you aren’t remembered for how far you go, but for how you go far.
Dogged Resolution
When reflecting on great leadership, I can’t think of a single heroic leader who wasn’t doggedly resolute. What this reminds me of, and should inspire us all, is this maxim of leadership: “It isn’t whether you win every battle; it is only important you don’t lose the last battle.” We see this truth borne out in the lives and leadership journeys of Washington, Lincoln, Churchill, Gandhi, King, and a host of others whose lives reflect occasional defeat yet a growing resilience enabling them to ultimately reach the high ground. Like Ernest Shackleton’s epic journey across Antarctica, all leaders will at times become figuratively shipwrecked and be challenged by this critical choice: Do I press ahead or turn back? Fate, in this regard, is not the guarantee of a right decision. Fate is simply the crossroads at which we find ourselves standing at a given moment. The crossroads will reveal our character via our choice. What’s the lesson? The crossroads awaits us all; what we do today, and every day, either strengthens our resolve or weakens it.
The Leader as Drummer
When reflecting on leadership we tend to focus on foreground elements such as, what leaders do. I prefer to focus instead on background elements such as, who leaders are. In this regard, I like to think of great leaders as drummers. Great leaders possess the ability to create a resonant drumbeat from which others first hear the call to action, and then, around which action is transformed into unified purpose. The characteristic of the drumbeat is never tactical nor technical; it is more the texture of perennial knowledge. The rat-tat-tat of the leader’s drum constantly sounds a cadence answering these elementary questions: Who are we? Why do we exist? What do we stand for? Where are we headed and why? For others to march towards the high ground of purpose, leaders must create a compelling drumbeat to call us to intentional action.
Recital and Improvisation
How does one master a craft as complex as leadership? The honest truth is—there’s no exact formula for mastery. Let’s use jazz as a metaphor to describe the elements of self mastery. Initially, an aspiring jazz musician must learn the basics; notes, chords, scales, rhythms, and harmonies. This foundational grounding is necessary because the musician must allow these cornerstones to become second nature. During early development, the focus is on the recital. Energy is poured into reciting back, quite literally, the basics of the craft. However, as time progresses a threshold in mastery must be crossed. The jazz musician must learn how to improvise; to take the foundations and then, through intuitive interpretation, adapt to the requirements of the moment. The same evolution occurs in pursuit of masterful leadership. We start by focusing on the recital, but to become truly heroic leaders, we must master the art of improvisation. Yes, we first learn to read sheet music. But in time and in action, we must learn to improvise masterfully to the needs of the moment.
An Artist’s Eye
Expert leadership is the admixture of detail and big picture. As such, I believe great leaders learn to develop what I call an artist’s eye: They see the beauty of small detail while equally perceiving the whole rendering. Great leaders see the grand end state and never lose sight of the end game, but equally and simultaneously–they possess great intellectual curiosity for detail. Great leaders are fascinated by how things work, why they work, and how they can be made better. Great leaders combine broad strokes and fine lines, enabling them to embrace strategic outcomes while also perfecting the intricate details of execution and performance. Great leaders never lose sight of the inspiration of the big picture, but they also never forget the vitality of small details. We must all learn to develop an artist’s eye and create the leadership brushstrokes, both broad and fine, to blend the top and bottom lines.
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Callan…Coffee…Contemplation for the Week of December 8th
December 8, 2014 | No Comments »
The Power to Choose
Inherent in leading are power and authority. Regardless of rank or position, we naturally accrue the ability to influence—either for the better or the worse. Of all the power inherent in leading, I believe the greatest power, is the power to choose. First, we have the power to choose how we will lead ourselves. Will we seek self mastery and develop the inner discipline to grow and mature? This is a choice of one’s paradigm; will we be uplifting, honorable, and courageous leaders, or negative, toxic, and weak? Second, we have the power to choose how we will lead others. Will we set a powerful example and create a compelling vision that transforms our people from subordinates into self-motivated leaders? Will we gain mastery and then willingly give it away to others through dedicated mentoring? Finally, we have the power to choose our legacy. Will we seek true significance, where we leave behind the foundations for others to follow and our organization to flourish, long after we are gone? There is much latent power in leadership; however, there is no greater power than the power to choose.
The Grand Illusion – Part I
Leadership is one of the most essential capabilities in life yet it remains a truly vexing topic. Google the term “leader” and you get over 500M hits. In a normal year, over 1,000 books and articles are published on leadership. Given this wealth of information, why do so many people still hunger for better leadership? Because we live in a state of grand illusion. Because of society’s demand for easily-won knowledge and our appetite for instant gratification, most leadership products today offer only quick fixes. These self-help gimmicks are grossly ineffective, but more worrisome, they imply leadership can be mastered in short order, reduced to a simple recipe of characteristics, or downloaded like a cheap computer application. This coarsening of leadership, and what it takes to lead masterfully, is a betrayal to both the leader and the led because it fails to instill a proper paradigm. To break the grand illusion, we need a better paradigm—a new leadership lens–which re-orients us to this hard but honest truth: Great leadership comes only via a life-long journey, a demanding crucible, and deep personal transformation.
The Grand Illusion – Part II
Leaders today would do well to reverse the trend of quick fixes and instant gratification and instead slow down, look inward, and by doing so, recapture this most important element to heroic leadership: self mastery. By rediscovering the eternal and immutable truths of leadership, we may then use this “clean lens” to navigate our leadership journeys and strive to become the heroic leaders we are called to be. Personally, I often reflect on the mythic framework of the Hero’s Journey to rediscover and revitalize the concept of the classic Hero. With leadership, like all essential truths, there is nothing really new to discover – but there is plenty to be remembered and relearned. I believe the most important thing we can teach emerging leaders today is a timeless paradigm of leadership, reimagined for today’s modern world, to then rekindle their way of thinking about leading and seeing the world as a leader sees it. For, like Shakespeare’s Hamlet, we will all find, at some point in our respective journeys, our lives demanding an answer to this eternal question: “Are you up to your destiny?”
No Rags to Riches
At times, we mistakenly believe true mastery can happen overnight. We like this romantic image of the rags-to-riches hero. But in reality, there are no rags-to-riches champions. Achieving enduring significance does not follow a simple “wins-only” trajectory. Heroic leaders don’t rise from nothing, are not perfect, nor do they make it alone. Leadership success is ultimately the by-product of a long pattern of development incorporating talent, recognition, practice, preparation, and personal readiness. Moreover, Enduring Significance is achieved by repeating that pattern of success over and over, enabled through unyielding self-discipline. The trials in one’s life, understood correctly, are simply the shaping instruments of one’s destiny. The rags enable the riches…if we let the rags teach us and convert us.
Caretakers
I was watching my neighbor recently as she meticulously cultivated her garden. Her daily routine, executed with great discipline, was clearly a sacred ritual for her. As she pruned and watered, I imagined she was toiling not only for the moment but more so–for a future date when someone else would inherit her garden. She was a caretaker; a wise and devoted master whose commitment went beyond just here and now and focused on passing virtue and excellence to the next generation. And what a great metaphor for heroic leadership. We too tend gardens, only our plots are populated by people and are made of brick and mortar. Leaders are caretakers too, because we are given soil and seeds, with a responsibility to till and nurture growth. Each year we produce a new crop—a cycle of new leaders, production, and performance. But we also have a sacred obligation to ensure this output endures across time. Leaders never really own their organization; they merely take care of it for the next generation.
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