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Leadership topic - Bands

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managing Celebrating

managing Celebrating

Mar 2, 2021 | , ,

Realizing that no one was actually listening made me question why I was giving my nights and weekends to being a college radio DJ.  So after a few weeks, I stepped down, but what to do with my time?  A few guys on the floor were starting to play guitar in the evenings, and I managed to bring mine back after a weekend at home.  Politely, one of them that I was tutoring through Physics pulled me aside and suggested that I might want to switch over to Bass …. as I was actually never going to be good on guitar… honest feedback that many years later I still Celebrate… 

Celebrating by engaging

Celebrating by engaging

Mar 1, 2021 | , ,

As I headed west from Tyler, my destination was Dallas where I engaged in the fall of 1976 on my path to become an Electrical Engineer.  One thing about engineering was once you picked which type (EE, ME, IE, etc), your class schedule was mostly set.  To get through it all in 4 years, you had to take 18 hours a semester, and the classes were sequenced so your “planning” was mostly just filling in a few “electives” that were like ‘free spaces’ on the Bingo card.  And being a good student, I ripped into the classes, including an 8 am MWF Statics class – a tough ME class required for all engineering majors… 

Performing and renewing

Performing and renewing

Feb 28, 2021 | , ,

After that jarring start yesterday, let’s take a more restful approach for today’s conversation.  It is difficult to tell what is real and what is Performing, particularly as you consider another’s or your own stance on faith.  Paradoxes of what is said versus what is done can be a conversation that goes in directions that are not renewing for anyone.  For me, it has helped to realize it is more a dance, and sometimes the steps are not clear or easy, and balance is hard to hold…

executing the Performance

executing the Performance

Feb 27, 2021 | , ,

So who are you… really?  A jarring way to start a Saturday conversation, but one that could be well-timed.  Freed from your 9-5 commitments, what do you pick up and execute … first?  As I have mentioned repeatedly, doing is what I do… Performing and acting.  Resting happens only in the process of actually executing something to be completely honest.  A weekend is best ended when there are activities that have been completed, things built, people entertained… you get the idea.  Performing and execution go hand in hand in my world…

wonder who is Performing?

wonder who is Performing?

Feb 26, 2021 | , ,

In my world, we talk a lot about Authenticity.  Ironic as we also talk about Performing… and Presence… and lots of other catchphrases that are offered up as insights to help people become “better”.  It is a wonder that we make any progress, with over 15,000 books published – each year, and the countless “self-help” blogs, video blogs, and writers like me giving you their pearls of wisdom to make it sound simple.  I can offer this insight – it is not easy… but the trick I have found is don’t lose the ability to wonder what it is that makes you Perform at your best.  There is always someone to help you in ways you can’t even imagine… 

Your Partners in Performing

Your Partners in Performing

Feb 24, 2021 | , ,

The First 90 Days is one of my favorite topics to work with new leaders on.  That time is when they are at their freshest to see things that can really help business change and grow… and also are at the highest risk of stepping into things they are just starting to understand.  As it is early in the year, I have a number that are on day 20-30 of that transition, and are feeling the compelling push to Perform – do SOMETHING… and another of my least favorite management “truisms” that is patently false – “Quick Wins”.  They are rarely either, and most often damage your reputation with at least one partner. 

What manages Performance?

What manages Performance?

Feb 23, 2021 | , ,

There is an entire industry now built up around what is called “Vulnerability”.  Brought to the forefront by researcher Brene Brown, now a legend, the concept is that deep inside all of us are fears that need to be managed.  Left unchecked, they can get in the way of our best Performance, and often are topics that I work with leaders to understand and reframe – the coaching word for turning Lemons into Lemonade.  The paradox often is that by not showing vulnerability in your early career, you appear to have it all figured out… which, to those of us later in our career, we can remember those days… and how Performance changes….

engaging Performance

engaging Performance

Feb 22, 2021 | , ,

A good friend was leading a workshop for leaders, and it caused me to pause.  She enjoyed drama and theater, including music and dancing which we had discussed often… as hobbies. She was now offering training for managers on Improv, what they shortened “improvisation” to in Performance competitions. Perhaps from my days in Debate, where the Theater people were… “different” – a feeling they had about us also – I thought it was little off.  What would Improv have to do with leadership?  And then… I was called in to engage a team with…. no preparation…

The renewal of Harmony

The renewal of Harmony

Feb 21, 2021 | , ,

It is appropriate that the week on Harmony ends where my first experiences were:  singing at church.  Growing up around the College Kids, in the early 60’s they would often be playing/singing Peter, Paul, and Mary songs, and watching them blend their voices “in renewal” encouraged me to learn how to do that.  I don’t know exactly what “ear training” is, but there are pictures of me sitting with my Flute-o-phone and those kids where I was playing Harmony.  Hearing the notes, and trying to get your brain/voice to match was a fun challenge, which eventually I mapped into reading music… sorta…

executing with Harmony

executing with Harmony

Feb 20, 2021 | , ,

When teams are at their peak, there are ways of executing together that anyone outside of the team may or may not even be able to observe.  Little looks and phrases become cues for Harmony that is hard to duplicate.  While the reason for being together may be stressful, those hours of work start to build up muscles that become second nature.  In one season, I was in meetings 3 times a day with the same people – 6 days a week.  We got tight enough to really understand how to cover for each other’s faults, and build on the strengths in ways that most teams will never experience.  What causes that Harmony? 

The wonder in Harmony

The wonder in Harmony

Feb 19, 2021 | , ,

Finally, we get to the song that triggered the week.  I have been trying to be more explicit about leadership and management tips lately, and hopefully, you have gotten a few.  Today’s story is so rich that I don’t have space (or the need) to point it out.  So wonder with me …. by this point, The Fifth Dimension is well on their way, having won multiple Grammys with multiple platinum records.  They were in New York City playing a series of concerts when Billy Davis noticed his wallet was missing – having fallen out in the cab he had just stepped out of.  “Well, that’s gone…. “ 

observing Harmony

observing Harmony

Feb 18, 2021 | , ,

We were at the hospital for a procedure, and the nurse couldn’t get the IV started.  Without missing a beat, another one came right over, picked up the work … and the conversation … without even missing a beat.  As a keen observer of teamwork, I perked up and started to chat her up about what it is like to work here?  “It is amazing – from the people who take out the garbage, to the staff that mops the floors, to the administrators who make sure we have what we need, we all come together to provide you with the best care”.  We were then whisked off to another room, with a similar experience…. How does that type of Harmony happen? 

partners for Harmony

partners for Harmony

Feb 17, 2021 | , ,

In watching the Food Network with my wife, there is a catch-phrase:  If You’re Looking, You’re Not Cooking.  Exactly the opposite is true with leadership, particularly now.  Before last year, at least talent was mostly limited to work they could drive to… and now, I know for a fact that people have started preparing for the annual spring job search with a NATIONAL target.  The war for talent is only going to get more intense as you can work from anywhere, and what will they be looking for?  Harmony and partnership – pure and simple.  The number one reason people stay is the relationship with their leader…. And the main reason they leave is … exactly the same.