Archive for March, 2009
Four Things You Can Learn from This March 30 2009 4 responses
Last week, I was conducting some colleague feedback interviews for a senior executive client in the financial services industry. We’re coming to the end of a seven month engagement which began in October 2008. The client has been terrific to work with so the closing interviews with colleagues have been pretty relaxed. Given all that’s happened in the financial services industry and in the world since last fall, I’ve been really interested to hear what the colleagues’ experience has been like since I first talked with each of them seven months ago.
One of the questions I’ve been asking is “Do you think this period is one that you’ll look back on years from now as one of the biggest learning and developmental experiences of your career?” Everyone has said yes. The responses and lessons learned thus far have been really striking.
You Get a Car! And You Get a Car! March 27 2009 3 responses
Remember that iconic moment from Oprah when she gave cars to everyone in her audience one day? “You get a car! You get a car! You get a car!” Man, that was some great television.
Well, the fun still continues at General Motors. As reported in a story on NPR this week, over 8,000 GM managers and executives are still participating in a 50 year old program where they get a new car to drive every three months. And, to make the deal even sweeter, they also get free gas to fill up the tank. Yes, you read that right. 32,000 free cars a year for its execs and an estimated $12 million in gas giveaways for a company that has already received over $20 billion in bailout money and, according to the Washington Post, will likely be recommended for more next week by President Obama’s auto industry task force.
How in the heck are we supposed to think about this? And, no, the answer is not outrage. Outrage is so last week. Here’s my take on what this tells us.
Strengths and Weaknesses March 25 2009 no responses
I’m spending most of this week fulfilling some of my duties as a faculty member in the Georgetown Leadership Coaching Program. One of the topics that comes up fairly frequently in the coaching classroom is the great debate on whether leaders should focus on playing to their strengths or improving their weaknesses. Books like Go Put Your Strengths to Work
I beg to differ. If you want to be successful as a senior leader, you have to address both sides of the equation. Strengths and weaknesses both matter – a lot.
Bernanke’s Message to America: “I Get It.” March 23 2009 no responses
Over the weekend, I caught up on some news I missed while I was taking spring break with my family. I’d heard a lot about Fed Chairman Ben Bernanke’s interview on 60 Minutes so I decided to check it out online. Honestly, I thought I’d give it a couple of minutes and move on. Twenty eight minutes later, I found myself still watching it. In terms of both content and style, it was a great example of effective leadership communications.
Here are some of my takeaways from the interview that apply to leaders who have to demonstrate that they “get it” in the midst of tough times:
Tim Geithner’s Biggest Problem March 19 2009 2 responses
It’s just seemed too easy to join the chorus of people piling on about the AIG bonus story and the questions around what Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner knew and when he knew it. As I’ve been on spring break with my family this week, I’ve kind of, sort of been paying attention to the story and honestly concluding that I didn’t have anything to add to the commentary other than a slightly different version of what others have already said.
Until today, that is. In skimming the major headlines this morning, I think I’ve hit on the biggest problem Tim Geithner has as a leader. It’s his alarm clock.
Spring Break with Eleanor March 18 2009 one response
This week my family is doing its part for the economic recovery by going to Laguna Beach for spring break. I have to confess that I’m intentionally unplugging from the news that normally inspires my blog posts. So, I’m looking for ideas in some unusual places – like gift shops for instance.
I saw this cool little sign today with a quote from Eleanor Roosevelt: “Learn from the mistakes of others. You can’t live long enough to make them all yourself.”
That appealed to me because it squared up so much with my own experience.
Leadership in Three Acts March 16 2009 2 responses
Yesterday’s New York Times presented a leadership morality play in three acts. Let me take a moment to connect the dots between one article that ran in the Week in Review section and two others that ran in the Business section. There are some instructive and, in the end, some uplifting conclusions to draw about how to lead in the world today.
Lessons of March Madness: Don’t Sit on a Lead March 13 2009 one response
It’s the holiday season for hoops fans in the States as the conference tournaments come to a climax this weekend and folks are getting ready to fill out their NCAA basketball tournament brackets. March Madness begins. If you’ve watched college ball (or just about any other team sport) for any length of time, you’ve seen the following happen. A great team surges to an early lead and then tries to slow down the game to run out the clock. What usually happens? They lose.
In switching from offense to protecting the lead, the team loses their natural rhythm and misses plays on both sides of the ball that they were making earlier in the game. Lately, I’ve been hearing stories from clients of successful executives who do the same thing. It’s the corporate version of sitting on the lead and, in the end, losing the game.
Five Principles for Building a Strong Network March 11 2009 16 responses
We’re living through a period when just about every organization is reevaluating the way it does business and restructuring for some combination of productivity, lower costs and innovation. I was coaching a group of leaders in one such organization this week. We concluded that the strategic management of one’s network is critical in this type of environment. But, let’s be clear. I’m not talking about a game of whoever has the most people in their LinkedIn account wins. Rather, it’s about asking the questions, “What am I trying to do and what kind of people can help me do it?” and then acting on the answers.
The leaders and I identified five principles that we think are non-negotiables in building a strong network. Here’s the list:
Rush Avoidance March 9 2009 no responses
Some regular readers of this blog have asked me if I’ll ever use an example of ineffective leadership regarding President Obama. Well, for those of you who have been waiting, today is your day. (Among the positive examples I’ve cited, however, let’s not overlook my post taking the administration to task for over-delegating the stimulus bill.)
Is anyone other than me sick of hearing about Rush Limbaugh? Are you asking yourself why, in the midst of once in a lifetime economic turmoil, he’s getting so much attention? As the New York Times reports this morning in a profile of presidential advisor, David Axelrod, it’s because the White House decided we should be talking about Rush. Why in the world would they decide that?
Scott Eblin is an executive coach, speaker and author of 
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