Archive for July, 2010
Seven Simple Rules to Create a Fear Based Culture July 29 2010 17 responses
Thanks to the readers of this blog, I've collected a really excellent list of things to do if you're a leader who wants to create a culture of fear in your organization. Not that the readers and commenters are suggesting that you actually do these things. Unfortunately, though, a lot of them have been on the receiving end of these behaviors and have witnessed the negative results. Sometimes these results are, as I wrote in a recent post, Fear Kills, matters of life and death. Most of the time they're not. (At least not immediately. Working in a stress inducing, soul sucking environment is never good for one's life expectancy over the long haul.)
So, with the idea in mind that a good way to learn leadership is to do the opposite of what really crappy leaders do, here is an edited list of readers' suggestions for seven simple rules for creating a fear based culture:
Business Travel Divas Turn Themselves In July 26 2010 no responses
Regular readers of this blog know that I’m on a reduced writing schedule while I’m on vacation with my family. And those who read my post, The Business Travel Diva’s Guide to Family Vacations a few weeks ago also know that I’m working hard to not be a travel diva jerk on this trip. So far, so good. At least that’s the feedback from my wife and kids.
When I wrote the guide, I had a sense that I wasn’t the only business travel diva out there. Since then, I’ve received confirmation that I’m not alone. There are some excellent comments on my original post (feel free to add yours) and, over the weekend, I learned that the Gulliver blog on The Economist’s web site picked up on the post and added it’s own perspective. There are some great reader comments there as well including this one from reader Edward:
“Having a strict no check-in luggage rule = no partner = die alone…”
Enjoy your summer family vacation everyone. Or, for my European readers, your holiday. (That sounds so much more fun than a vacation. I’d much rather go on holiday than to vacate.)
Fear Kills July 23 2010 3 responses
In case you didn’t see it, a report in the New York Times earlier this week offers a stark example of what can happen when the culture of an organization discourages open and honest dialogue. The article reports that in a study conducted earlier this year by the insurer, Lloyds, the crew of the Deepwater Horizon rig that exploded in the Gulf of Mexico had significant and ongoing concerns about the safety of the rig. The Lloyds team was on board the rig about a month before it blew and conducted a safety survey and a number of focus groups with Transocean crew members over the course of several days.
Here’s the passage from the article that really hit home with me.
Thrown Under the Bus. That’s Not Leadership. July 21 2010 6 responses
I haven’t followed the news much over the past couple of days since I’ve been on vacation and have unplugged from much of the stuff I usually pay attention to. That includes cable news. This morning, while I was packing for the next leg, I turned on the TV and heard the story of the firing of USDA official Shirley Sherrod.
You can read this story in the Washington Post for all the details, but the quick version is that she gave a speech to a local NAACP chapter back in March. An excerpt of that speech was picked up out of context by a blogger and then Fox News and Sherrod, an African American, was portrayed in the 24 hour news cycle as racist against whites. Within a day, the national NAACP joined in decrying her as racist and she was ordered by a deputy secretary of the USDA to submit her resignation via Blackberry before the story was further flamed on the upcoming episode of Glenn Beck.
The problem was that when you watch the entire speech and learn the history behind her story, Sherrod is not a racist but someone who learned through experience to look beyond race. In the meantime, though, she was thrown under the bus in short order with no due process.
Video Book Club: Made to Stick July 20 2010 4 responses
If you been to a book store in the past three years, you’ve no doubt seen Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath. You likely remember the bright orange cover and the big strip of silver duct tape across the front. Those guys practice what they preach which is all about how to make ideas sticky. Who could forget a book with duct tape on it?
In this week’s VBC, I share a couple of quick takeaways from Made to Stick including the Heath brothers, organizing acronym, SUCCESS. (I forgot to mention the word, success, in the video but did spell it out for you.). Take a look to learn what it means in the realm of stickiness.
Two Bobs Show It’s Not All About Them July 19 2010 2 responses
Don't you hate it when a point you've been making to others on a regular basis is made by someone else and you realize you still have a long way to go yourself on the point you've been making?
If you're still with me after that long sentence, I'll fess up that that has happened to me lately. Twice in the same week actually.
A point I'm always making when working with leaders on next level opportunities is to pick up the outside in view and let go of the inside out view. A big part of that in my mind is making the shift from I to We. Common sense, right? It's one of those things that's easy to say, but hard to do.
The first wake up call for me in the past week was when I read a very nice article in the Washington Post on leadership coach Bob Rosen and his firm Healthy Companies International. Bob shares a lot of wisdom in the article but the one that hit home for me was what he said in this passage:
Thank You for Not Giving Me Cash July 16 2010 4 responses
There were some interesting reader poll results in the daily SmartBrief on Leadership newsletter this week. The question was, “What’s the most satisfying reward you can receive for a job well done?” The number one answer, with 30% of the responses, was “cold hard cash.” The interesting part was the answers that came in a very close second and third at almost 30% and 28% respectively. Number two was “praise and expressions of thanks from my team and my customers.” Number three was “a handwritten thank you from an executive/leader I respect.”
So, based on the SmartBrief results, we can conclude that more people (58%) want thanks than cash (30%) for a job well done. This stat came up yesterday when I was wrapping up a group coaching program with some executives I’ve been working with over the last seven months.
The Business Travel Diva’s Rules for Family Vacations July 14 2010 9 responses
It’s that favorite time of year. Summer, when the road warrior, business travel divas deign to disrupt their routine to fly with their families on vacation. You can spot them easily. They’ll be the people who are walking about a quarter mile ahead instinctively passing on the left and otherwise artfully sidestepping the aimless people who don’t have a plan for getting to the gate. Meanwhile, their families are lagging behind with the kids distracted by the junk in the airport shops and the spouse trying to herd all of the cats. No wonder vacations are so much fun.
As a public service to business travel divas and their families, I’m offering a handy clip and save list of rules that road warriors can give to their family members as a helpful aid to packing and getting through the airport. These are all field tested by yours truly. However, in the interest of full disclosure, I no longer use them since my wife threatened me with bodily harm if I don’t get over myself and lighten the hell up when we all travel together. But, hey, maybe you’re more committed to your craft than I am. If that’s the case, here’s that list that will be so helpful to you and the rest of your family this summer vacation season. In the interest of developing a comprehensive resource, feel free to add your own in the Comments.
Video Book Club – Beach Read Edition: Operation Mincemeat July 13 2010 no responses
In this week’s VBC, I’m offering a summer beach read suggestion for those who like mystery, intrigue and spy craft thrown in with their leadership insights. Operation Mincemeat
It’s a fun and fascinating read that shows how important characteristics like persistence and ingenuity can be to the practice of leadership. Take a look at the video for other thoughts on why you might like this book.
Leadership Lessons in Classlessness and Class July 12 2010 no responses
Last week, in my post, Five Signs You Might Be a Tool, I made a passing reference to the way that LeBron James left the Cleveland Cavaliers. During the televised LeBron-a-thon, I lost count of how many times he used the words, me, my, mine and I to say nothing of referring to himself in the third person. Of course, the capper was when he told the interviewer Jim Gray that of the six NBA teams that had been recruiting him, the only one that knew his decision at that moment was the one that he planned to play for. A few seconds later, he announced that it was the Miami Heat. I immediately said to my wife, “That’s not the way you let your employer know that you’re taking a new job.” Classless.
Apparently, Cleveland Cavaliers owner Dan Gilbert thought the same thing because it wasn’t long before he had posted a scathing open letter to the Cavs’ fans on the team’s official web site. In it, he rips James every which way from Sunday and then promises the Cleveland fans that his energy “will be directed at one thing and one thing only: DELIVERING YOU the championship you have long deserved and is long overdue….” When I read between the lines of Gilbert’s letter, it comes across as a somewhat desperate attempt to deflect any anger or blame that the Cavs fans might feel towards him for not delivering that championship during the seven years that LeBron played in Cleveland. Once again, classless.
In contrast to the seedy and classless drama engineered by James and Gilbert, this weekend marked the passing of Bob Sheppard. Unless you’re a New York Yankees fan or a long time lover of baseball, you may not have heard of him. For the better part of 50 years, he was on the public address system at the House That Ruth Built as the voice of the Yankees. There was no flash or contrived drama in the way that Sheppard called the game. It was simply consistent perfection in his craft. Listen to his voice on this tribute video. More importantly, listen to and look at the way so many Yankee greats express their affection and appreciation for what Sheppard did and how he did it. It wasn’t about him, it was about the work and facilitating the work of others. That’s one definition of leadership. It’s definitely a definition of class.
So, what’s your take? Any other lessons to be learned from the LeBron drama? Better yet, how about sharing your nominations for classy leaders? Who are they and why are you nominating them?
Scott Eblin is an executive coach, speaker and author of 
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