I began a great conversation this week with James Krucik. James asks questions that get me thinking. James and I met on Twitter, and he sent me an email that included a question: What is strategy? My short answer was that strategy translates depth and core values into focused action steps. Included in his reply was another question: What do you mean by depth? What an excellent question! I suppose that my short answer would be that depth is where our core... Read more
I am a person of focus. One of those personality tests tells me that focus is one of my strongest qualities. I rely on focus often, sometimes too often. I recognize that there are times when I focus because I intend to focus. I pay attention. I concentrate. I commit more and more of my subroutines to organizing, or understanding, or finding. I focus on choosing exactly the right word, or sorting out competing feelings and concerns, or listening to... Read more
Answers make me comfortable. I enjoy solving the mystery, working out the solution, completing the puzzle. I like to figure out the story before the storyteller finishes it. Getting an answer, especially the right answer, makes me feel like I have accomplished something. I really appreciate it when people bring their questions to me and I help them find answers. That, in some ways, is even better than answering my own questions. For a long time, I cared more about... Read more
Today is not the longest day of the year. Each day is the same length. Today, in the northern hemisphere, is the day with the longest period of sunshine. It is the brightest day of the year, the day we spend the most time in the light. Many of us revel in the light. We bask in the bright sun, in the light produced by our technology, in the glow of attention from other people. We are drawn to the... Read more
I live in Pasadena, California. I was not born in Pasadena, or Southern California. I lived in several places before moving to Pasadena. Pasadena is a pleasant place to live. It is not perfect, but the climate and weather are very nice. Pasadena is not on the beach, but is nestled against the foothills of the San Gabriel Mountains. They are an awesome sight on television each year during the Rose Bowl football game, and very impressive in person. Pasadena... Read more
Leadership is like being on the trapeze. For one thing, it can be helpful to have a safety net that can hold you. There will be times when your reach exceeds your grasp, and a safety net can make a real difference. It is important to try new approaches and explore new possibilities. A safety net will help ensure that you are around to learn the lessons your experiments have for you. It is also important to know who you... Read more
I do not remember any truly deep conversations with my father. My father was someone who did not really trust the power of words. I have come to appreciate, since he died, that words could not express his deepest experiences or feelings. Both of my father’s parents had already died by the time he turned ten years old. He was raised by two aunts, both of whom were schoolteachers. When I knew them, many years later, my main impression was... Read more
I rely on my ability to focus. During any given day, I focus my mind on reading, on listening, on writing. I focus effort on getting out of bed in the morning, making sure that the tea is exactly right, being on time, on walking without tripping. I tend to focus a lot on words. I pay attention to how things taste and smell, how they look and feel. I work hard focusing on results. Sometimes I focus more on... Read more
Matthew Cavanaugh is a friend of mine. I met him first through his wife, Laura Knowles Cavanaugh. Matthew enjoys doing many things I do, only in different places. He walks up the sides of mountains, while I usually walk on sidewalks. He goes out into nature to reflect on leadership and depth in nature, while I tend to wander around town. We decided to trade guest posts about climbing the mountain of leadership. Thank you, Matthew. A few years ago,... Read more
Depth stops me in my tracks. There are people who seek experiences of depth. Some people meditate and some people go skydiving. They look for ways to connect with the Depth all around us and draw it into their everyday lives. Some people take pilgrimages to “thin” places, where there is very little boundary between the deeply sacred and the everyday. Some people read books about Depth, and some people work hard to let go of the things that distract... Read more
Strategic Monk
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