leadership dot #2156: bite

The arrival of the warmer weather is accompanied by the presence of ticks – those pinhead size insects that, when infected, can cause Lyme disease in humans. Lyme is serious stuff. Even with treatment it negatively impacts those who contract it for at least six months, causing fatigue, joint pain, headaches and even partial paralysis. Over 300,000 in the United States are diagnosed with Lyme each year.

Fleas are also out in full force, and those little bugs can transmit Bubonic plague to humans. The Plague sounds like an ancient disease – and, in fact, did kill over 50 million people in the 14^thcentury – but it is still active today. Over 650 people year contract it and 100 of them die each year from the bacteria.

Even though they spread the diseases, the health of the ticks and fleas are not impacted. That which harms humans does not bother the bugs, thus, it allows for perpetuation without negative consequences to the host carrier.

I think about the parallels between fleas and ticks and the parasites who infect the culture of an organization. Often, they are tiny and inconspicuous – you may need to aggressively ferret them out to find them, but their small bites do tremendous harm to the organism. There is treatment, but no cure, and even with treatment the impact lasts for many months. Initially, you may think your actions have eradicated the problem, but it often lingers.

Just as you need to be diligent about watching for ticks and fleas and properly extracting them when found on your clothing, so it is true with the gossip-spreaders and negative-energy infectors in your organization. They may be small, but do not underestimate how debilitating their bite can be – even when you don’t notice it has happened.

Source:  Wikipedia

leadership dot #1949: the prize

For the umpteenth time, I watched The Shawshank Redemption and loved it as much as when I first saw it. The same is true for It’s a Wonderful Life, one of my favorites that I will watch yet again during the holiday season.

Both of these movies have become popular classics and are shown over and over on television. Yet neither of them were Oscar winners – in any category.

Although they were both nominees for Best Picture and had several nominations in other categories, the only Academy Award or Golden Globe win between the two of them was a Golden Globe for Frank Capra as director. (Ironically, the Japanese Film Academy awarded Shawshank as Best Foreign Film!)

Yet today, both movies have been included by the American Film Institute in the top 100 movies ever made. The Library of Congress has preserved Shawshank in the National Film Registry as a movie that is “culturally, historically or aesthetically significant.” It’s a Wonderful Life has been called “one of the most loved films in American cinema.”

Filmmakers may think that the Academy Awards or Golden Globes are the ultimate prize and such recognition is necessary for validation of their work. These two films show that it is not.

Don’t let your self-esteem or fortitude be dampened because you did not win the equivalent of your Oscar. Keep creating good work and let knowing that you did be your prize.

Source: imdb and Wikipedia

leadership dot #1939: dominoes

As I think of the dot number today (1939), I am reminded of that year when Hitler invaded Poland and World War II began. It was the trigger event that started the war, but it got me wondering what led up to that event. First Hitler had to come to power. He had to choose Poland as a place to invade first. He had to negotiate a nonaggression pact with Poland in 1934 “to neutralize the possibility of a French-Polish military alliance against Germany before Germany had a chance to rearm.”* He had to assemble and equip an army. And a thousand other things occurred within Germany, Poland and the world to set the stage for the initial invasion to happen.

I wonder what the first domino was that started this horrific chain of events. More so, I wonder what dominoes are in play right now and are lining up for other events to happen. You could cite steps leading to climate change or the state of U.S. politics, but, closer to home, think about the dominoes in your organization. What small steps are happening now that seem insignificant, but eventually will take on greater prominence – either for good or ill?

Consider who is in your talent pipeline – will that brand new hire become CEO after a few decades – or does the departure of a key employee alter the trajectory of the organization? Is that preliminary research into a new market what will cause your growth to explode? Is there an idea that is percolating now which will eventually become the main focus of your work? Is someone making a decision that puts the organization at a crossroads with its values and will determine its future path?

Hitler didn’t wake up on September 1, 1939 and decide to invade Poland; that strategy was in the works for years before. Who knows what is in the works today.
We can’t predict the future, but we can watch for signs that will alert us to what is already in process and more likely to manifest itself into reality. Pay attention to the “dots” as the inertia of the universe is compelled to connect them with something.

*Source: United States Holocaust Memorial Museum, Invasion of Poland, Fall 1939

leadership dot #1929: flooded

Even more impressive than the contributions of nearly a million pair of underwear in Houston is the story of the H-E-B grocery store chain and their efforts to continue supplying residents with essential needs post-hurricane.

The chain had over 80% of its stores operational despite the huge logistical challenges to do so. It was possible because of planning in advance, establishment of two command centers and a whatever-it-takes culture that empowered staff to operate outside the normal way of doing business. Volunteers came in from other H-E-B stores to help with stocking shelves. The manager talked directly with suppliers and even manufacturers to alter delivery schedules and instead take truckloads of the most needed products. The company took an intensely pragmatic approach: no frozen food, no floral, no variety – just the best sellers and as much bread, mops, bleach and water as was possible to receive. They used helicopters, contracted with the Army and would have used the corporate plane if Trump hadn’t closed the airspace.

I encourage you to read the fascinating full story for a back-of-the-house account of organizational mastery.

H-E-B brings disaster planning to a whole new level. While they could not plan for every situation, they knew what fundamentals to put in place in anticipation of pending crisis, and had the latitude to act once the disaster occurred. Would your organization be as simultaneously prepared and nimble?

Take a lesson from Houston H-E-B and division president Scott McClelland and take steps now to replicate parallel practices in your organization. You’ll be flooded with enough ambiguity if disaster occurs; better to prepare when you aren’t plugging the holes.

How does this dot connect with you? Leave a comment and share your observations with others.

Source: The inside story of what it took to keep a Texas grocery store chain running in the chaos of Hurricane Harvey by Chip Cutter on LinkedIn, September 2, 2017.

leadership dot #1873: circuitous path

Yesterday I wrote about my insect bite and related it to the need for organizational Benadryl. As far as the bite goes, Benadryl performed so well and so instantaneously that it got me wondering about the drug itself. Where did this miracle come from?

While I expected that it was invented by a man named Ben, its originator is actually George Rieveschal. While he was conducting academic research on muscle relaxants (not allergy inhibitors), he realized that his formula blocked Histamines and thus lessened the impact of itching and inflammation. Rieveschal pursued his research at Parke-Davis drug manufacturing, and Benadryl became available with a prescription in 1946. For his invention, he received a 5% royalty during the initial 17-year patent period, but not any income after the product became over-the-counter and reached $180 million in sales.

You might expect that Rieveschal was a medical doctor or at least had medical training. Actually, his initial degree was from the Ohio Mechanics Institute of Technology and he sought his first job in commercial art. Fortunately for those with allergies or itches, it was the Great Depression and no art jobs were to be found, so he went back to school and pursued chemistry. He was a chemical engineering professor when he made his initial discovery. 

Those in higher education speak to students all the time about how a choosing a major should not be the major decision than it is made out to be. Rieveschal is a great example of a circuitous path that led to great things, and I am sure the diversity in his education aided in his research.

Regardless of what you studied or what your current career is, pursue your interests with a passion. The next miracle creation could be yours.

To learn more: George Rieveschal, 91, Allergy Reliever, Dies by Dennis Hevesi, The New York Times, September 29, 2007.

P.S. The name Benadryl comes from the technical name of the formula: beta-dimethylaminoethylbenzhydryl ether hydrochloride.

leadership dot #1845: goodwill

In the business communication class I am teaching, last week we covered "goodwill messages" including notes for recognition, thanks or sympathy. The authors wrote: "finding the right words to express feelings is often more difficult than writing ordinary business documents. That is why writers tend to procrastinate when it comes to goodwill messages."* The students in my class agreed. Hardly any of them shared their sentiments in writing, preferring to do so verbally, if at all.

But handwritten goodwill messages always mean so much more. In Jim Collins' speech that I wrote about yesterday, he references a note his wife received from her high school cross country coach -- and how she kept that note for four decades. Something so simple and handwritten had that much meaning that she preserved it for most of her adult life.

Even I hesitated before recently sending a note with a newspaper article to a former student. I wondered whether he would care to hear from me, but instead I received an instantaneous email saying: "It was absolutely wonderful to hear from you again! I appreciate your postcard so much; it made my entire week!" Why did I have any doubt?

The few moments it takes to put pen to paper to share your message has benefits that will far outlast the time it takes to share your goodwill. The next time you're thinking about someone, let the words flow across the notecard rather than just crossing your mind.

*Business Communication Process and Product 8th edition by Mary Ellen Guffey and Dana Loewy

leadership dot #1827: the error

I hope you enjoyed the brief interlude with guest authors. I'm back today, ready to celebrate the 5-year anniversary of leadership dots!

I recently watched the TEDx talk by Molly Tierney about rethinking the foster care system. Even if child welfare isn't your area of interest, her talk is worth the 10 minutes to think about the parallels with your own line of work.

Tierney became director of an agency and spent several years improving the results. Her department won awards and became a national model. "We became a well oiled machine..." she said. "I regret that this success has not also resulted in us actually helping people." Instead Tierney argues that the reason child welfare isn't working is because there are children in foster care. "It's not that the government is doing it badly; it's that foster care is a bad idea. The error is the intervention."

Think about your organization. Are you doing something that feels good to you and that you may even be successful at doing, but if you really admitted it, is the wrong thing to do.  Colleges are offering remedial classes to students who should not be there, rather than not admitting them, or graduating those students even though they don't have the skills to be productive citizens. Banks are offering special mortgage packages to allow people to buy homes well beyond their price ranges instead of showing them ways to improve their long term finances. Doctors are providing treatments to people instead of helping them stay well.

Tierney cautioned against "mistaking something that feels good to us for something that is actually helping other people." Use her talk as a litmus test for your organization and ask yourself if you are truly working on the right thing.

leadership dot #1806: counting

I guess Mormon pioneer William Clayton was bored as he crossed the Plains in a covered wagon in 1847. It was during his journey that he invented the odometer. It may not sound like a sexy invention, but "previous to this, mileage was calculated by counting the revolutions of a rag tied to the spoke of a wagon wheel."

Think of the advantages the odometer had over the manual counting of a rag's rotations! The odometer allowed for standardization of units and use, greater accuracy in map-making and directions, measurements that ultimately lead to GPS and has become the universal mechanism for recording mileage in vehicles.

I doubt Clayton thought of these implications 170 years ago today when he released his new tool, but his invention lives on and is in use in almost every vehicle on the road today. 

What problem or inefficiency do you see that you could improve? What seemingly minor contribution can you make that could actually turn out to have far greater reach? How can you see something with new eyes? I'm counting on you to be like William Clayton and make a little piece of your world better today.

* Source: Chase's Calendar of Events: Anniversary of Odometer Invented, May 12, 1847.

leadership dot #1780: life

While most people have Easter as top of mind today, for 32 special families, today means something else. April 16 is the tenth anniversary of the shootings on the Virginia Tech campus where 32 members of the community were killed and an additional 17 injured.

For many people, Virginia Tech meant that the Columbine High School massacre wasn't an anomaly; instead it was possible to be a victim of a mass shooting while going about ordinary business in a place perceived to be safe. It was daylight on a campus, not a protest march like at Kent State, a showdown with the FBI or in a war zone. Now people have been gunned down en masse at a movie theater, shopping mall, night club, church, holiday party and elementary school, but when Virginia Tech happened, it was big news.

Maybe this event had more of an impact on me because I was working on a campus at the time. We sent cards to the student life staff and wore maroon and gold ribbons for days. The higher education was in solidarity trying to cope together, because we realized that at any instant, this could have been us.

Unfortunately, mass shootings have become almost commonplace these days. We hear about them in the news, but don't feel them in our hearts. As many of you celebrate life today at your Easter services, vow to take action beyond the holiday to preserve life through curbing gun violence in our country.

leadership dot #1777: symbols

A one-line obituary in People magazine caught my eye: "Gilbert Baker, 65, who created the iconic rainbow flag to represent gay pride and the LGBTQ community, died in New York City on March 31." Without the clause describing his enduring creation, I doubt you would have known who he was, and until his obituary, never knew the name behind the symbol.

I think about the thousands of other people who have contributed to our visual world in an anonymous way. Someone created the first emojis, all the state flags, the seal of the United States, graphics for Air Force One, the Peace Sign, the universal symbol for handicapped access and millions of other graphics that are so much a part of our world that we do not even notice them. There is a person behind the elephant and donkey symbols for the political parties, someone who standardized the first smiley face icon, laid out the mast head for the New York Times and Playbill and who sketched the first baseball team logos decades ago. 

The symbols created by Baker and thousands of others have the power to unify (and divide) us, to engender emotion, to convey our values and to aid in making the world function more efficiently. We may not have the artistic talent to leave our mark in this visible and lasting way, but we can do more to pay attention to all that graphically surrounds us. Even if it is through a silent tribute to an unknown creator, consciously pay attention to the symbols that have colored our world.

*People magazine, April 17, 2017, p. 30

leadership dot #1767: onward

The offices at Starbucks headquarters will feel differently today as Howard Schultz is no longer in the CEO role. Yesterday, Schultz stepped down -- again -- a role he held for the second time since 2008.

I am not a coffee drinker so I don't have personal experience with the Starbucks product, but there is hardly anyone around who hasn't had interaction with the Starbucks brand. His contributions to defining the importance of a "third place" -- beyond home or office for gathering, socializing or work -- have reimagined the role of many "fast casual" restaurants and internet access points throughout the world.

His book Onward is one of the most candid assessments I have read from a business leader. Schultz outlines his triumphs as well as failures and reflects on them in a way that all of us can learn from. I think it should be required reading in MBA classes! (For a page of highlights, click here.)

Schultz used his mantra "Onward" not only to title his book, but to sign all of his correspondence. It is a fitting word for today as he moves on to the next chapter in his, and his company's, existence. Learn from his experience and take to heart some of what he recommends: "Grow with discipline. Balance intuition with rigor. Never expect a silver bullet. Use authentic experiences to inspire. Be decisive in times of crisis. Believe."  (And, of course, read the book.)

Thanks to Tricia!

leadership dot #1742: hopeful

If I asked you how much extreme poverty has changed globally since 1990, what would you answer? An increase or decrease and by how much?

Compare that to respondents in a Glocalites survey who answered:
decreased more than 25% = 1% of responses
decreased 25% = 12% of responses
stayed the same = 18% of responses
increased 25% or more = 70% of responses

The 1% were correct. Extreme poverty has decreased more than half over the last 25 years according to the Annual Letter by Bill and Melinda Gates describing the work of the Gates Foundation. The Letter is full of several positive results, many of which are unnoticed by the U.S. mainstream.

For example, the number of new cases of polio/year was 350,000 in 1988 and last year was a total of 37 globally (not 37,0000; just 37 -- all those in high conflict areas of Afghanistan, Pakistan and Nigeria where it is too dangerous to do immunizations.) Why should this matter?

I think that optimism is in short supply these days, and to have proof of substantial results should be encouraging to all of us. It shows that staggering, global problems can be solved -- that it may take millions of dollars and decades of work, but that positive change does occur. Optimism also builds momentum as people want to be associated with winners and success -- the more that people believe efforts are having an impact, the more likely they are to personally support the changes.

If you need a dose of hopeful news (made more credible as it is balanced with a dose of realism), read the Annual Letter. Bill and Melinda conclude with their optimistic prediction: "We're confident of one thing: The future will surprise the pessimists." That's the best news I have heard in awhile.

[For more on this read the Fortune magazine commentary: What Bill and Melinda Gates see that Donald Trump Doesn't by William Taylor, February 17, 2017: "You can be a Gates fan, a Trump fan, or a fan of neither, but it’s impossible not to be struck by how differently these supremely powerful people see and explain the world. I’ll leave it to you to reckon with the implications of these differences for your business, your approach to leadership, and the future of the planet."]

leadership dot #1741: women's day

Today is International Women's Day -- a "global day celebrating the social, economic, cultural and political achievements of women. The day also marks a call to action for accelerating gender parity." 

Every woman could cite an example of gender bias, often unrealized in the moment by anyone besides herself. But until the subtle differences are made conscious, it becomes difficult to impact change and achieve equality in pay, behavior and norms.

In a recent case my class read, Alex Sander was a hard-charging, driven executive who was the sales leader in the group. Alex's assertiveness was not liked, but accepted as a trade-off for top performance metrics. But the conversation changed when it was revealed that Alex was, in fact, a woman. Suddenly that same behavior seemed too aggressive and a behavioral issue. While it made for great class discussion, it makes for a lousy standard in the workplace.

Facebook's Sheryl Sandberg has said: "That little girl's not bossy -- that little girl has executive leadership skills." (It's one of the the e-cards the Massachusetts Conference for Women prepared for others to send to women today.) Sheryl could have been talking about the fictional Alex Sander -- or someone you know. Use today to heighten your sensitivity to differences in how women are treated -- by others and by you -- and make a commitment to do better.

#BeBoldforChange

leadership dot #1740: pack of wolves

For my organizational behavior class, I am always on the lookout for examples of systems thinking. The more tangible I can make the concept of interconnectedness for my students, the sooner they understand that culture is entwined with every other aspect of the organization. It then makes it much more productive for us to discuss the role leadership plays in creating the desired climate.

The latest example I have used is from nature, specifically how the release of 14 wolves in Yellowstone National Park resulted in myriad of changes in the area. Components of the ecosystem were impacted in ways that were unplanned and unexpected, highlighting once again how everything on the planet ultimately relies on others for survival.

Watch this four-minute video to learn about "one of the most exciting scientific findings of the last half-century." If a pack of wolves can have this much impact, just think what a group of humans can do for an organization, community or beyond. How can you band together and howl?

leadership dot #1729: drawing conclusions

I read a fascinating story about the discovery that linked hand washing to the prevention of disease. In the 1840s, women were dying at alarming rates -- not during child birth, but days afterward. No one knew the cause of the mysterious "child birth fever" that took the lives of the mothers.

During the same period, doctors were beginning to become more scientific in their work, thus began conducting autopsies with regularity. It was not uncommon for a doctor to do an autopsy as part of his day, then go directly to treat other patients -- without washing hands or changing clothes.

Enter Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis who wondered why the ward with doctors had 5x the childbirth deaths as the ward with midwives. His answer came when a colleague pricked his finger during an autopsy and died. Dr. Semmelweis then realized the deaths were not linked to child birth, rather to the autopsies. He reasoned that some type of poison was seeping from the body, and ordered doctors to use chlorine after their procedures.

Happy ending, right? Wrong. The other doctors did not believe they were responsible for the deaths, and would not accept Semmelweis' findings. Instead, they fired him and sent him to an asylum where he died. Twenty years later, the work of Louis Pasteur confirmed that Semmelweis was correct, and hand washing has become common practice.

The next time you have a problem to solve, think of Dr. Ignaz Semmelweis. Pay attention to the clues and draw conclusions on the facts, not on what people have believed. And if you know your conclusion is correct, stay with it, even if others won't believe you until after you are gone.

Full story linked in Chelsea Clinton's Tweet

leadership dot #1726: simplify

I recently facilitated a strategic planning process and worked hard to get the task force to end up with one goal. One total.

They wouldn't do it.

Or maybe they couldn't do it, because it involves making hard choices that as a task force they were unable to make.

I don't disagree with anything that ended up in the final plan. It is all important. But having multiple goals means that it's all equally important and I don't think that is ever truly the case.

I wrote yesterday about managing complexity. Having a laser focus on one goal is a strategy to do just that. The more we can simplify, the more we reduce the complexity that distracts and dilutes.

If you ask your boss for one thing that you can do to improve, her feedback will be more helpful than a multi-page performance appraisal. If you ask your family what is their favorite thing to do on a vacation, it will guide your planning more than a travel agent could. If you make one promise to yourself of something to accomplish today, the odds are great it will get done.

Michael Bungay Stanier from Box of Crayons has a wonderful two-line planning tool that you can download here.  Follow his advice and simplify. Force yourself to get to the essence of what is important. If you weed out the fluff, you take what remains more seriously.

leadership dot #1695: inscription

Last week when I picked up my mail, I was surprised to see a book delivered that I did not order. When I l looked at it more closely, I saw that it was sent to me from a former student. He was the author -- and wrote about his successful, albeit turbulent, journey through law school.

More importantly than that, he wrote a three-page inscription, thanking me for what I did for him while he was a student. "Despite my academic downfalls and periodic bouts with trouble and controversy, you always supported me and often directed me to constructive solutions. (I realize I likely put you through hell.) While I may not have always taken your advice, I respected you and what you tried to do for me with SGA, TKE, etc. You are certainly a big reason I was able to take the lessons I learned in leadership into my profession and life..."

I have not heard from Jeremy in almost 20 years. He did put me through hell as an outspoken student government president. When I last saw him, I would have never imagined he would be the one writing such a heartfelt and eloquent note in a book that he authored. And yet, apparently I made a difference in his life, just as his inscription made a difference for me.

Handwritten expressions of gratitude are incredibly powerful things. Take that extra few minutes today to let someone know the impact they have had on your life. If you haven't been in touch for a decade or two, so much the better. It's never too late to let someone know that they mattered.

leadership dot #1694: outsider

Imagine that you worked for an organization most of your life. During this time, you held various roles to broaden your skills. You took on more and more leadership responsibilities, tackled the tough projects, did some of the grunt work and gained experience in a broad range of departments. In the analogy of the military, you "earned your stripes."

And then the top job came open and you applied. You had the experience and skills. You had proven yourself loyal to the organization. Many in the organization wanted you more than the other candidate.

Yet, someone from the outside got the job instead. Someone with no experience in your organization. Those hiring did not know this candidate or have evidence as to what he could do, but some thought an outside perspective could be valuable. He had no concrete plans for how to make things better, but the bravado in the interviewing process earned him the job anyway. 

And now you have to work with him.
And live with the consequences of his actions.

There is a flood of emotion as you find yourself in this spot, but it comes down to two choices. Leave the organization or work like the dickens to make it better. Our Declaration of Independence reminds us that we are endowed with certain inalienable rights: life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness. Fairness is not one of them.

So like it or not, the outsider has the wheel and we need to become involved to keep him from steering us all over the cliff. Get to work.

leadership dot #1690: march

The speech that really brought Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. into the spotlight was his infamous "I Have a Dream" speech during the March on Washington in 1963. King galvanized the 200,000 participants at the rally to demand civil rights for all Americans and the March became a powerful symbol for unification and hope.

Another March on Washington will occur this Saturday, and thanks in part to the power of social media, the crowd is expected to be much larger. Men and women of all ethnicities and ages -- will stand together in solidarity to support the human rights of all people. The Women's March on Washington was organized in response to the insults and degradation of women and minorities by the incoming administration and is designed to foster connections and grass roots change much like the March on Washington did in 1963. Hopefully, there will be a modern-day Dr. King that can inspire and rally hundreds of thousands to work for change in today's era of civil unrest and inequality.

Whether you are in Washington to participate or whether you partake in one of the local marches (happening in every state and many local communities), I hope you let your voice be heard. As that "overrated" Meryl Streep so eloquently said: "Disrespect invites disrespect, violence incites violence." Model respect and non-violence as Dr. King did, and do your part to make his dream a reality.

leadership dot #1672: philanthropy

The media often reports large philanthropic gifts given by the Buffets, Gates Foundation or Zuckerbergs, and it may cause you to think that your donation does not matter. But charitable giving is one of the most powerful thing you can do, no matter the size of your gift. "Philanthropy is quite democratic and always has been -- more people give than vote in the U.S. -- and $20, $10, and $1 gifts do make a cumulative difference," reports Patrick Rooney, associate dean at the Indiana University Lilly Family School of Philanthropy.

The Giving USA Foundation reported that last year, $373.3 billion was donated in the U.S., comprising 2% of the Gross Domestic Product (GDP). Religious organizations, education, human services and foundations were the largest beneficiaries of those funds. (The report provides a much more detailed breakdown of giving if you are interested in more detail.)  You may think that large foundations or the companies supply all the funds to keep services flowing, but many organizations depend on the generosity of individuals to survive: individuals provided 70% of all charitable giving last year ($264.5 billion.)

As you wind up this year, grab your checkbook and be that individual who makes a difference for an organization. In addition to your regular charities, think about an unusual suspect* to be the recipient of your generosity as well. This podcast by Malcolm Gladwell is a great illustration of how your gift can make a disproportionately large impact to lesser known organizations.

Wishing you much success in 2017 so that your contributions may increase, too!

*Need a great cause to support? My sister's 501(c)3 Alia is doing powerful work in transforming child welfare systems!