Leading in Difficult Times

Leading in difficult times requires focusing on some basic leadership principles we sometimes take for granted.  The first of these is that we as leaders are given a great responsibility to care for those individuals entrusted to us.  We are leading people and thus responsible for their care, a critical reality considering the current pandemic.  It means adjusting expectations to account for the stress our team members are experiencing; stress related to working from home, to the fears of becoming ill, or resulting from a loved one being diagnosed with CoVid-19.  Whatever the cause, we need to remember that leading is not about us, it is about those we lead and ensuring they have the necessary support to navigate through this difficult crisis.  Those who have empowered and entrusted us to lead on their behalf expect no less of us as leaders.

Second, we need to remember that our leadership role is temporary, we will all move on from our current roles.  For some, it will be a promotion to another position or a move to another company for a more fulfilling role or better pay.  Whatever the reason, we need to avoid getting too comfortable and the assumption that our current leadership role is permanent because regardless of our tenure, we will move on.  This means we have a limited time to do our best, to lead with excellence.  It means staying focused on making sure our teams have all they need to be successful, that every team member is addressed based on their individual circumstances.

Thirdly, we need to remember that we are accountable for our roles as leaders.  We are accountable to those who have chosen us to lead and to those whom we have chosen to lead.  That accountability requires us to consider the type of leaders we are going to be, leaders focused on ourselves or leaders focused on those we serve.  Servant leaders understand that leading is about serving others, we provide balance to ensure we stay centered on our organizational mission and values, never sacrificing either because of any one person.  We do this while remembering who we are and ensuring we never bend on those critical values all leaders should practice.  Everything we do should align with being respectfully honest, practicing excellence, being accountable, and working as a team.

Leadership is difficult in any given situation but during difficult times, it is critical that we as leaders remember we are responsible for those we lead, that our roles are temporary or seasonal, and that we will be held accountable for how we conduct ourselves.  Just a little advice to go!

Second Chances

Are there no second chances for the young child of color today, second chances to grow up and play.

Second chances to correct a wrong, to pontificate with friends about a favorite song.

Too young to die, to old to cry, no second chances and the question is why?

Why not a second chance, for that young Black child, a chance to grow, a chance to smile,

A Latino child with the same exact smile, hoping to live more than just a little while.

Why not a second chance for that young man of color, that man we should all call our brother,

For that sister who is much like you and me mister; different in gender and color of skin, still undeniably our kin.

Second chances to escape an unwarranted death, death at the hands of the protector, neglecter, rejecter and disrespecter.

A second chance to smile, sing, love, hug, make a wrong right and live another night;

To overcome the hate, sexism, racism, and all the isms of this place, A second chance to make their case. 

Second chances, why not a second chance, first chance, Never had a chance...

Leading Change

Leaders need to be at the forefront of making change happen, a process that should remind us to focus on some basic practices.  Here are some helpful hints:

1. Think outside of the box, put aside the traditional way of doing things, and try something totally different.  Clearly, the same old thing is not working and thus the need for change.  An outsider's view might be helpful.

2. Focus on your strengths and not your weaknesses.  Use your strengths to ensure a successful change and focus on the strengths others bring to the table to compensate for the skills you lack.

3. Stay encouraged, a positive perspective is critical to determining the changes that need to be made.  The change team has to leave the negativity at the door and take on a win-win approach.  

4. Come up with a change plan, implement it and then revisit it to ascertain if it is working.  Change can be ongoing and modifying the plan may be necessary ensure the change will be successful.

5. When change happens and things improve, celebrate!  We often resolve an issue with some innovative changes only to then move on to the next problem before celebrating the one we have just resolved.

Remember that change is about impacting the things you can control and not the ones beyond your control.  Lead the change! Just a little advice to go!

Overcoming Isolation!

In a previous post, I spoke of the important of developing intimate friendships and avoiding isolation.  Never did I imagine we would find ourselves battling a pandemic that requires we isolate ourselves and limit our physical contact with those outside of our immediate family members.  In my previous post, I noted the impact of technology in fostering superficial relationships and contributing to our isolation.  But today, I note the importance of using technology to liberate us from our isolation.

I meet daily with my work team via Microsoft Teams, but we make it a point to turn the cameras on.  We get to see each other in our homes with all the interruptions that make the experience so much more intimate.  We have wives walking by the camera with their hair in a towel, children jumping up and down on the bed, dogs barking, leaf blowers sounding, school teachers zooming in and so much more.  These welcomed interruptions provide a glimpse into the daily lives of my teammates, it provides for a greater level of intimacy with people with whom I share a significant portion of my life.  It helps me serve them with a greater level of understanding, compassion, and appreciation.  The same is true for my friends and family as I can use the same technology to ensure a more intimate contact with each of them; contact beyond a simple text, voice mail or e-mail.  I can see and experience their daily realities and feel like I'm right there with them. How awesome!

Poet John Donne wrote the poem No Man Is An Island to remind us that every person "is a piece of the continent, a part of the main...".  We depend on each other for the social contact that helps formulate who we are and will become.  Technology can never replace the need for touch, the need to feel the presence of another, the vibrations of another's laughter, or the embrace of the one whose sorrow leads to tears.  But if used appropriately, technology can help us better connect with others and offset the isolation forced upon us by this pandemic.  Just a little advice to go!

The Truth Shall Set You Free

As leaders it is critical we understand the importance of being truthful, first with ourselves and then with others. Those who know me have heard me say more than once, "the worse person to lie to is yourself". Time has taught me that our desire to protect ourselves from consequence, the fear of consequence, leads us to deny or distort the facts around the truth. Much like a child's fear of consequence, we often rationalize our mistakes to the point of converting the truth into our version of events, a truth that helps us avoid consequence. But the fact remains that no matter how much we convince ourselves that the facts are as we want them to be, those who witnessed our actions know the truth.

We can deceive ourselves, but it is difficult to deceive those who witnessed our behavior, they are perplexed at our inability to accept responsibility for our actions. We set an example for those around us that when things go wrong, it is acceptable to distort the facts and blame someone else. We even have the audacity to judge others when they fail to own their mistakes without regard for the fact that we have encouraged their behavior because we are unwilling to own ours.

There is a biblical scripture, John 8:32, which speaks about being set free, not simply from the fear of consequence but from living a life of falsehood. It means living a principled life, one where being truthful comes naturally because it is what we expect of ourselves and others. It means we own our mistakes because we understand that owning them makes us better and reflects to those around us that we expect them to own their's. It recognizes our humanity and the fact that we are flawed and will make mistakes. It ensures that because we own our mistakes and the consequences of those mistakes, that we are astute in our decision making, willing to include the insights of others before making a final decision. These are the freedoms we gain as leaders when we make the commitment to be truthful in spite of the consequences. Practicing truthfulness, particularly when things go wrong, frees others to do the same and eliminates any accuses for their choosing to be untruthful. The truth shall set you free. Just a little advice to go!

Focus on the Content, Not the Package!

This past week, I attended a Leadership Summit sponsored by my employer, Endeavors.  It was an excellent growth opportunity and I have to share some of the knowledge I gained.  One of the speakers was Dr. J. Bruce Stewart, Managing Partner of Small World Solutions Consulting.  He spoke on the topics of Diversity and Inclusion, two areas I happen to be passionate about.  Dr. Stewart reminded me that despite all we learn, we need to continue to work towards understanding the value of diversity and ensuring we are inclusive of that diversity in our teams and decision making.

Diversity is more than just about one characteristic, specifically more than just the one trait we quickly focus on when we hear the term diversity.  If you have a room occupied by Black women, do you have diversity?  Many would respond to that question with a resounding no, because they have focused on one aspect of those in the room, the color of their skin.  But the reality is that Black women can originate from many different countries and speak different languages, thus their race has little to do with their diversity.  Their different cultures, experiences, and education provide for a group of diverse women making them all valuable, the content clearly more important than the package.  It is important to ensure these varying experiences and cultures have the opportunity to be included on our teams,  as they will enrich the team's knowledge and performance.

In the world of law enforcement, we often focus on one attribute when addressing the challenges we face regarding how police respond to people of color.  We have implemented a number of programs to ensure a diverse police force, but the challenges remain.  Perhaps, we have failed to ensure that we have a more inclusive police force, one that is more clearly educated on how we are all different and how we come to respect each others differences.  The same is often true in most work places where decisions are made without any effort to control for our biases, biases we all have and are often not aware of.   The challenge is to ensure we are being self conscious about our implicit biases so we can work to prevent them from hindering our decision making and become more inclusive of others.  Dr. Stewart offered three rules for inclusion, here they are:

1. Get of of your comfort zone.
2. Seek out and respect other perspectives.
3. We are smarter together.

Perhaps it sounds a bit simplistic, but maybe it is just as simple as each of us working towards figuring out our individual biases and ensuring we are willing to address them by getting out of our comfort zones, welcoming the perspectives others have and recognizing the value of working together with those who may be the least like us.  My challenge to each of you is to be intentional about educating yourself on how to overcome your own biases and how to become a more inclusive leader.  I'll continue to share on the topic as I educate myself, starting with my next piece about the three types of biases Dr. Stewart discussed during his presentation.  Please remember to focus on the contents on not the package!  Just a little advice to go!

Matters of the Heart!

Each one of us knows the importance of monitoring your heart health to ensure a healthy and productive life.  Good leaders understand the importance of monitoring the heart’s health when it comes to their thoughts and desires. There is a bible scripture that I love, it states, “Out of the abundance of the heart, speaketh the mouth” (Luke 6:45). Ensuring your heart is in a good place is critical as it will determine what you think, say, and do.  It is precisely what dictates the type of leader you are and will continue to be.  

Good leaders understand the importance of addressing those past lived experiences that often result in anger and bitterness.  Failing to address these hurts leads to behaviors that are predicated on the toxic voices from within, which often result in inappropriate behavior.  Too many leaders, despite having achieved great success, go on to fail because of their unwillingness to address their past hurts and the resulting vulnerabilities.  They make the mistake of believing that if they simply say the right things, that will make up for all the wrong things that continue to haunt them.  In the end, the “fake it until you make it” approach does not last and they end result is “heart failure”, the inability to lead.  

Becoming a good leader means confronting the matters of the heart, dealing with past mistakes, seeking forgiveness when appropriate, and ensuring the toxic voices are silenced.  Good leaders are not defined by their past, but their past has refined them and helped them to become better people and in the end, better leaders.  They address the matters of the heart and learn to be real, to be the type of leader that focuses on honor, excellence, accountability, respect and teamwork. Just a little advice to go!