Last Friday I spent a couple of hours thinking about my job instead of actually doing it. I mulled over all that is going on, what I’ve been accomplishing, where my time is being spent, what my priorities are, and so on. I guess you could say I was reflecting. To you, this may sound like a colossally assinine waste of time, but self-reflection is actually one of the defining qualities of a high-performance leader. Which I am attempting to... Read more
I was gunning across town the other day on the way to my next meeting, when I noticed a big new sign in front of a local business establishment. “Stove and Artisan Shop” it said, in casual, pompous-looking brown letters. I groaned out loud and rolled my eyes. Please. I’m sorry, but isn’t this the same store, selling the same stinking wood burners and fireplace paraphernalia as before? And now, suddenly, it’s become – an artisan shop? I found out later that the... Read more
My colleagues and I are trying to generate more conflict in our meetings at work. Some of us executives have been reading “Death by Meeting,” by Patrick Lencioni. He promotes, among other things, healthy drama as the starring attraction of your meetings. Conflict is good, he says, because it forces people to get beyond surface-level platitudes and head nodding – which of course leads to head-bobbing and drooping eyelids. Instead, conflict can get team members engaged by digging deep into the heart of an issue and... Read more
My daughter went on her first professional interview earlier this week. I had made arrangements for her to meet with a friend of mine who owns a smallish but very successful advertising agency in the outskirts of town. As a freshman in college studying communications, it seemed like an advertising agency would be the perfect place to get her started with some work experience next summer. I dropped her off at the office building and headed for the café next door, where... Read more
A couple of weeks ago The New York Times reported that an astronomer from the University of Nebraska, Dr. Martin Gaskell, is suing the University of Kentucky over a claim that he was not hired there because of his religious faith. During the interview process, Dr. Gaskell was grilled about his religious beliefs by the head of the physics and astronomy department, Dr. Michael Cavagnero. I suppose this has something to do with the presumption that real scientists aren’t supposed to... Read more
A young man from South America stayed as a guest with my family during the Christmas Holidays. It was his first ever visit to the United States. When we asked how the American Christmas compared to the same tradition in his home country, he tilted his head slightly and, in a slow Spanish accent, said, “In America, I think Christmas is more….” He paused for a moment, searching for just the right phrase in English. He then screwed up his mouth and carefully, deliberately pronounced the... Read more
I met up with a non-blogger friend of mine last month for breakfast, and the conversation turned to my sick writing hobby. “How many hits a day do you get on your blog?” he asked. He was genuinely curious. In some circles, this might be considered to be a rude and much-too-personal question, like asking how much money you make, or how much weight you have gained this past year. But I didn’t care. It’s not like I’m in some kind of... Read more
Ray Kroc, the founder of McDonald’s, is famously quoted as saying, “When you’re green you’re growing. When you’re ripe you rot.” The gist of his message being that if you are not actively pursuing growth, then, well, you are probably on the way out. Of life. There’s no such thing as passively cruising along in neutral. At this time of year, most of us are in wild agreement with Mr. Kroc, as we tear off a clean sheet of paper... Read more
I am just now noticing how severely neglectful I have been over this blog lately. Well, it is the holiday season, after all, and I am still knee-deep in the festivities and the cleaning up that comes afterward. We’ve had quite an entertaining week around my house, with several carloads of family arriving, and a few less departing. Some are still here. So blogging takes a second seat to real life. I hope that goes for you too. In the meantime, I... Read more
Every few months I am asked to address the High Potential Leaders’ group in our company, to share with them my vast wealth of leadership experience and business acumen. Actually, the HR Director just asked me to tell them a little bit about my job. Anyway, after I finished my most recent presentation to these ambitious up and comers, a strapping young man approached me and, out of the blue, asked, “What is the difference between ethics and integrity?” I... Read more
Shrinking the Camel
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