Your Meeting of the Year

When are you going to have your best meeting of the year?   Next week?  Next month? 4th Quarter?

I may have already had mine the day before yesterday.  I set out in 2013 with the goal of more coffee and lunch meetings with more creative people to network, brainstorm, and gain ideas from to help kickstart the year.  And my meeting with Nicholas McGill, an acquaintance I've not seen for several years, ended up providing me with more value and inspiration than I ever imagined.

We have the potential to help each other with connections, business opportunities, and personal goal achievement--and it made me wonder why I let several years go by without reaching out to him.  We have our next meeting already on the calendar to follow up on the areas where we might be able to help one another.

In case you're wondering, this extremely bright talented young man runs his own company here in Northern California, Heroik Media, and has a team working with him transforming businesses, people, and heck--who knows, maybe the world next.  Watch Nicholas' two-minute video introduction--you won't be disappointed and it might inspire you to:

• Consider how you tell the world who you are
• Consider who you are in the first place
• Consider reaching out to Nicholas via email
• Consider that next coffee or lunch meeting you schedule.

When will be your best meeting of the year?

Driving the Message

Assuming that your top management team is meeting weekly or monthly, the next key to driving communication and messaging throughout your company is to meet with your "extended management" team at least quarterly. Here is where you share safety issues, financial performance, and progress against objectives.  This is all part of the "rhythm" required to make a company run at it's best.

Level 5 Leadership

In Good to Great, Jim Collins described Level 5 Leadership as "building enduring greatness through a blend of personal humility and professional will."  The ego needs of the leader are shifted away from herself and onto the greater good of the company.  This isn't to say the ego isn't present--it is, but the focus is on that of the organization--not the leader.

The "leader as a celebrity" is an image most of us are familiar with--but Collins suggests that there is a strong correlation between lower key, hands-on leadership and enduring success.

Where do you stand?

Right People, Opportunity, and Compensation

"If you pick the right people and give them the opportunity to spread their wings—and put compensation as a carrier behind it—you almost don't have to manage them."               --Jack Welch--


I'd add that this means giving your people the tools and target, getting out of their way, and clearly showing the rewards for winning.

Who Are You?

Are you the person you want your people to be?

And if you aren't, how can you expect them to be?

All great leadership begins with modeling.  Setting the example.  Being the person you want your own people to be.

As a matter of fact, the laws of nature prevent anything other than this from being true.

1. The law of the mirror states that what you give--you get back. And what you see--is what you are.
2. Who you are has a great deal to do with who you attract into your life, business, and relationships.
3. Like attracts like.  Great people attract great people.  Positive people attract positive people.

Positive begets positive. 

Thematic vs. Hands-On Leadership

A manager can provide thematic leadership when on the command deck while the crew mans the guns and gets the work done.  But that same manager also needs to be able to and willing to role up his sleeves to do the work when needed.

The troops need leadership, and they also need to know their leader would join along side them if needed.

It reminds me of the story about the battle leader who proclaimed he could win over his opponent and that his army would do anything for him, because he knew they were each ready to give their life for him.

The battle leader's opponent knew different.  "It is my troops that are unstoppable, because each of them know I am willing to give my life for them.

Dinner With Tony Soprano

On HBO series "The Soprano's," did you ever notice how many times Tony had his "family" (a.k.a. employees) over to his home for dinner?  BBQs, formal dinners, and parties.  All intended to "build his team," honor them, and get closer to them.

It's something so many team leaders forget to do these days.  There's nothing quite like a little socializing with working partners while breaking bread (just be sure your team isn't out breaking legs--like Tony's guys).

It won't work if you overdue it. But done genuinely and in the right doses, it'll be enjoyable anyway--and it'll all work out.

In the rush of driving results and getting things done, be sure to make time to slow down and enjoy the people with whom you work.  They'll see you in a different light, and sometimes that's a really good thing.

Dare Yourself to be Real

Candor.  Jack Welch calls it "the Biggest Dirty Little Secret in Business."

Why is that?  Because often enough, people just don't open up and say what's on their mind--good or bad.  They withold criticism, they want to "make nice" and avoid conflict (as I said two Blogs ago in "Did You Reach Consensus?  Oh-oh").

We have to be determined to use more candor in the way we deal with our people, our teams, our meetings, and our situation.  From Welch's book "Winning:"

1. "....candor gets more people in the conversation, and when you get more people in the conversation, to state the obvious, you get idea rich."  "Instead of everyone shutting down, everyone opens up and learns.  Any organization-or unit or team-that brings more people and their minds in to the conversation has an immediate advantage."

2. "...candor generates speed.  When ideas are in everyone's face, they can be debated rapidly, expanded and enhanced, and acted upon.  That approach-surface, debate, improve, decide-isn't just an advantage, it's a necessity in a global marketplace."

3. "...candor cuts costs." "Just think of how it eliminates meaningless meetings and b.s. reports that confirm what everyone already knows.  Think of how candor replaces fancy PowerPoint slides and mind-numbing presentations (with real conversations)."

You've seen and know when people are using candor.  Dare to do it yourself.  Don't hold back.

In fact, be blunt.  Do it with respect, but better to show tough love than hold back and fail to achieve.

Is There a Faker Among You?

It can feel great and satisfying to work with a (team) that seems to take on assignments, make decisions, and produce results.  But if that (team) has an imposter among it--well, you don't have a true team. And you aren't going to have lasting success.

Imposters and fakers on teams nod in approval but act in opposition.

Imposters and fakers on teams appear to be "on board" but in fact, quietly undermine, undermine, and undermine.

Imposters and fakers on teams give lip service to the mission but hold their invidual agenda highest.

Imposters and fakers on teams will be the end of the (team)...unless you find them out.

Do you have an imposter and faker among you?  What are you going to do about it?

5 Qualities of a Team

By far, the most important of the four components of Strategy, Team, Execution, and Results--is the TEAM.  Specifically, no group, organization, or team can function at its highest level possible until five qualities are present.  In Patrick Lencioni's best selling book, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, he shows what happens when these qualities are non-existent--and how to achieve lasting change.

Qualities of the Best Teams:

• They trust each other.  If hidden agendas exist or the slightest mis-trust between any of the group members, teamwork will be stifled.
  
• They engage in unfiltered conflict.  Ideas and debated--sometimes very passionately.  Everyone has to know that its acceptable to push on one another and flush out any bad ideas which will let the best rise to the top.
  
• They commit to plans and actions.  Once a direction is set, ALL members commit.  They are aligned, they move quickly, and they are clear about their direction and priorities.
  
• They hold each other accountable.  Poor performers feel pressure to improve.  Respect increases when all team members are held to the same high standards.
  
• They focus on collective results.  Individual agendas are replaced by an intense desire and commitment to the team's accomplishments.  Attaining the goal is job #1.

CHALLENGE.   If you want to take one step to achieve absolute improvement in the way your team works together, buy a copy of The Five Dysfunctions of a Team for each member of your team and take them through it and it's exercises.  You'll experience some amazing breakthroughs....and break-withs.

Select Your Crew, Get Rid of Mutineers, and Harness Everyone's Strengths

It is so tempting.

You arrive as a new supervisor or manager in a department or division.  And the first thing you want to do is to "change things" and make your mark and make a difference.

You learn the business, you go see some customers, you design some new programs and "ways of doing things," and within 30-90 days, you LAUNCH your new plan.

And in 90 more days, you haven't reached your goals and the results are not that much different.

Why?  Because you started with tactics, programs, and measures.  You didn't start with the people.

Jim Collins said it better than anyone in Good to Great.  First, you:

1. Get the right people on the bus
2. Get the wrong people off the bus
3. And get the right people in the right seats

But assessing, working with, and adding or eliminating people take up valuable time, right?  Yup, sure does.  "I'll figure out the people part later, but for now--I've got to change somethings and satisfy my boss!"

In extreme cases, you have to step aboard and make immediate changes.  Like the ship's First Mate who takes over for a Captain wounded in battle.  If he doesn't put out the fires, plug the leaks, and grab the wheel with both hands--the entire ship and crew are in trouble.

But unless your ship is on fire and leaking water, you need to first CAREFULLY select your crew, and in particular--the leaders of that crew.  You need to remove the mutineers and leave them on shore.  And then you need to see to it that everyone on the ship is doing the job they were born to do--which might not necessarily be the job they're in now.

When the crew is right, only then can you chart your course, raise the sail, and head North with the confidence that you are all a team committed to one thing: the destination.

Success…right under our noses.

Patrick Lencioni captured my attention in 2002 when Chris Walton shared "The Five Dysfunctions of a Team" with me and his management team.  I've been a fan ever since (of both Lencioni and Walton, but I digress).

Yes, products and services are important, but it's the TEAM that at the end of the day, defines a company's greatness.

I was in the audience last month when John Maxwell told a story about two clients.  They both happen to be restaurants selling chicken.  One of them was operating with a focus on product and price.  They had little emphasis on the people.  The energy in the employees was low.

The other company focused on developing their people and viewed success as creating a superior experience for their customers--through the excellence of their people.  The investment in the employees was high and it showed in their dynamic energy.

Two restaurants selling chicken.  One focused on product and price.  One with an emphasis on developing their people and teams in order to provide superior service.  Guess which one is achieving record success?

Lencioni's latest book, The Advantage, makes the point even further.  The following is from the jacket of the book:

"While too many leaders are still limiting their search for advantage to conventional and largely exhausted areas like marketing, strategy, and technology, Lencioni demonstrates that there is an untapped gold mine siting right beneath them.  Instead of trying to become smarter, he asserts that leaders and organizations need to shift their focus to becoming healthier, allowing them to tap into the more-than-sufficient intelligence and expertise they already have."

Lencioni and Maxwell remind us "it's not about the widgets (or chicken).  It's about people.

Organizational Clarity

Leaders need to personally be clear about their vision and their strategy.

And just as importantly, they need to do something with it.  Employees and the team must know the vision, and the top leader must take responsibility for ensuring the vision is shared.

How?  Constant messaging to employees.  I don't know of too many companies that over communicate. But the greatest ones do.

They create visual work places.

They post the score (how the company is doing in all measurable areas).

They communicate the goals to the employees often.

They communicate the successes, setbacks, and challenges often.

They are accessible and "make the rounds" often to socialize the goals, objectives, initiatives, and how the company is doing.

Question:  Do your team members know the goals and the score?

Clear Leadership

It hits you like a 2 x 4 on a freezing day. That strong, clear, and compelling leadership that's missing so often. But when it's present, it is awesome. 

You see it this way.

The leader that cares for the people, and is genuinely interested in them.  Who starts with assembling the greatest team comprised of the greatest people doing the greatest things.

The leader that articulates a clear vision--so clear and compelling in fact that everyone from the senior team to the team who sweeps the floors knows exactly what is important, which direction is North, and where you are headed. 

The leader who develops her people with training and coaching.

The leader who meets with his team one-on-one to provide feedback and coaching--and support the achievemkent of individual and organizational goals.

The leader that meets with all the employees frequently--to reinforce those messages you found so inspiring and compelling the first time you heard them.

And the leader who, of course--delivers the results, because she helped her team be successful, who in turn--helped her be successful.


This is the leader who "suits up, and shows up."  Every day.  In every way.

When Is A Leadership Team---"Not?"

A leadership team "isn't a team" when it's members don't trust one another.  It won't operate at its best if the members even mistrust a single person on the team.

A leadership team doesn't operate when it's members work in their own silos--placing their personal or department agendas ahead of the team's.

A leadership team doesn't point fingers at one another--because they know that four of those fingers are often pointing back at themselves.

A leadership team doesn't withold helpful, constructive criticism or debate around key ideas in order to "make nice" with the others.

A leadership team doesn't let take their collective or individual "eyes off the goal" and allow critical progress toward results to go unaddressed.  And a leadership team doesn't continuously take on new projects before they execute and complete the current.

So where does teamwork start?

In Patrick Lencioni's book The Five Dysfunctions of a Team, the author places "trust" at the foundation of building effective leadership and management teams.  If you've not read the book--I place it at the top 5 most useful business books I've read.  Like Lencioni, I also place trust at the core of an effective team.

Earning and building trust is a two-way street--and it happens on and off the court.  When team members trust one another--each knows that he or she can count on the other members to work together for the good of the team.  Personal agendas are checked at the door.  Attempts at control and power-grabbing are absent. The agreed upon objectives of the team become "goal #1" for all--with no exceptions.

Leadership teams can attempt to master all the other qualities of a high performing team--but if trust is missing--or even in question, the collective results will suffer.

Do you have a team? If the answer is no, where do you need to start?