How the Led can change the Leader - Forbes.com

      I recently had the distinct privilege to co-author an article for Forbes.com with Leadership Coach and CEO of N2Growth, Mr. Mike Myatt (Picture left), on one of my favorite concepts - how an organization affects the leadership growth of its leader.  Mike graciously offered an opportunity to share development of his weekly column and I hope you enjoy the result!

Here's a sample...  


     "The reality is that the ‘led’ have more of an impact on a leader’s growth over their career than any individual mentor/leader. After all, the led are the group that will accept or reject a leader’s actions, words, and decisions. This acceptance or rejection..."
http://www.forbes.com/sites/mikemyatt/2012/01/17/how-the-led-can-change-the-leader/

Giving a Chance to Succeed - Who is Sitting on Your Bench?

     This CBS News story is five+ years old (March 2006) but you still can't help but smile, marvel and be inspired by Jason McElwain.  Sports has always served as a leadership laboratory for youth, a place where they can risk and learn to work collaboratively for something greater than themselves.

     The lessons from this story are many, but here are my 'Top Five', the ones I think are most important:

     1 - Never judge a team member's ability to contribute without giving them the chance to succeed.
     2 - Inspired performance by one member of the team will unfailingly inspire the rest.
     3 - As a leader/coach you must follow your instinct and challenge the 'norm' with action.
     4 - Leaders/coaches have the power to change lives - every single day.
     5 - Is there someone on your bench you haven't 'pointed to' yet?

What lesson do you 'take away' from this amazing story?

Who is sitting on your bench?

Teamwork Quotes

What You Learn While You Lead Stays With You.

     The transcript of this speech came to me via email sometime in 2004 and it resonated enough that I have kept it in my files ever since.  The speech was given at a cadet "Dining In," a traditional, formal military officers' dinner held to honor the unit's history and build comraderie amongst warriors.  Then LTC Guy Lofaro has an outstanding reputation as a true scholar-Soldier and his words provide exceptional insight into the values and dedication of those who serve in uniform.  While the words are nearly 11 years old, the sentiments are timeless and worth sharing again.  



     "Let me say before beginning, that it has been my pleasure to attend several dinings-in here at West Point and hence, I have some basis for comparison. You people have done a fine job and you ought to congratulate yourselves.

     In fact, why don't we take this time to have the persons who were responsible for this event, stand, so we can acknowledge them publicly. I guess I am honored with these invitations because there exists this rumor that I can tell a story. Cadets, who I have had in class, sometimes approach me beforehand and request that, during my speech, I tell some of the stories I've told them in class.

     For the longest time I have resisted this. I simply didn't think this the right forum for story-telling, so I tried instead, with varying degrees of success, to use this time to impart some higher lesson - some thought that would perhaps stay with one or two of you a little longer than the 10 or 15 minutes I will be standing here. I tried this again last week at another dining-in and I bombed. Big time. Of course, the cadets didn't say that. They said all the polite things - "Thank you, sir, for those inspiring words - You've provided us much food for thought - We all certainly learned something from you tonight, sir." And I'm thinking - yeah - you learned something all right. You learned never to invite that SOB to be a dining-in speaker again.

     So in the interim, I've spent quite a bit of time thinking about what I would say to you tonight. What can I say that will stay with you? And as I reflected on this I turned it on myself - what stays with me? What makes a mark on me? What do I remember, and why? How have I learned the higher lessons I so desperately want to impart to you? Well - I've learned those higher lessons through experience. And as I thought further, I realized that there's only one way to relate experience - that is to tell some stories.

     So I'm going to try something new here this evening. I'm going to give you your stories and attempt to relate what I've learned by living them. I'm going to let you crawl inside my eye-sockets and see some of the things I've seen these past 18 years.

     Imagine you are a brand new second lieutenant on a peacekeeping mission in the Sinai Peninsula . You are less than a year out of West Point , and only a few weeks out of the basic course. You are standing at a strict position of attention in front of your battalion commander, a man you will come to realize was one of the finest soldiers with whom you've ever served, and you are being questioned about a mistake - a big mistake - that you've made.

Leadership Matters.

One man's quest to change a continent, in this video Patrick Awuah tells the story of how he learned to think about leadership and how it matters to the world using his native Ghana as an example.  Soft spoken and extremely articulate, his insights into the future of Africa are profound and teach a number of great lessons that can be applied to our own lives and country.

If you don't have the time to watch the video, consider these six important messages:

1) The manner in which we educate our leaders is fundamental to progress . . .and will make all the difference.

2) Good leaders do not emerge spontaneously, somebody trained them.

  
3) When a leader fails, then the nation suffers.

4) Leaders develop the ability to deal with ambiguity and complexity, to deal with problems they have never seen before.

5) "The real privilege of leadership is to serve humanity."

6) Leaders should never have a stronger sense of entitlement than their sense of responsibility.

Patrick Awuah left Ghana as a teenager to attend Swarthmore College in the United States, then stayed on to build a career at Microsoft in Seattle. In returning to his home country, he has made a commitment to educating young people in critical thinking and ethical service, values he believes are crucial for the nation-building that lies ahead.

Will They Come Get You in a Fight?

True courage in leadership is often, and surprisingly, found in the little day to day things we do. Small acts of courage to make the hard choices, to confront adversity and uncertainty demonstrates to the organization that you follow a moral compass that will get the team from point a to point b without compromise of integrity or standards.

A mentor once told me to judge my leaders (or people posing as leaders) by whether or not they would "come get you in a fight." The phrase is a colorful one and a product of Army culture, but his message was really about judging my leadership's courage, their ability to stay the course, underwrite my organizations mistakes and stand behind my decisions when things got rocky.

Now more, than 10 years after he told me that, I find myself telling the leaders on my own teams that "I will come get you in a fight" and use that phrase to open the open the dialogue about my expectations for their courage and integrity levels. It is a powerful conversation to have when there is open dialogue about what you expect from your leaders.

One word of caution though ... ensure that your acts of courage are guided by a clear set of values that align with the organization's mission.

Without clearly understood values and alignment, acts of courage can rapidly be interpreted by others (and your team) as lunacy.

I highly recommend Mike Myatt's blog post on Leadership and Courage found at www.n2growth.com/blog/leadership-and-courage.

Sent from my iPhone

Believe in Yourself!

As leaders we often unknowingly accept bias in our perspectives and this can impose self limiting beliefs that will affect performance. Unfortunately , we sometimes allow these limits to affect how we interact and groom the potential in our teams. This very powerful video by Caroline Casey will inspire you, trigger reflection and, most importantly, reinforce how important it is to be unwavering in the way you believe in yourself and your team.

Are you placing obstacles in the way of your ability to make a difference?

Believe.

Caroline Casey: Looking past limits | Video on TED.com

  

Caroline Casey has dedicated the past decade of her life to changing how global society views people with disabilities. In 2000, she rode 1000 kilometers across India on an elephant to...

Leadership; Relationships, Trust & Shared Perspective

"I knew wherever I was that you thought of me, and if I got in a tight place you would come - if alive"

                                                                        Gen William T. Sherman to Gen Ulysses S. Grant

     Many will know of, and remember, GEN Stanley McChrystal as the leader who resigned from his command in Afghanistan as a result of an article published in Rolling Stone magazine.  What we should better recognize is his 37 years of selfless service to our nation, something for which I am personally thankful.  In this fifteen minute video GEN(ret) McChrystal talks about leadership, the importance of shared perspectives and taking care of each other.

I hope you enjoy it and recognize the passion of a leader who understands the importance of  trust and connection to his team.

Celebrating Higher Education and the Future.

     Without a doubt, it was inspiring to witness the work of the DeVry staff and local business leaders as they teamed up to make the DeVry students successful

     I also had the privilege of addressing an audience composed of students, faculty, staff  and local business leaders as part of their celebration of the one year anniversary of the Keller School of Management in New Jersey and the launch of the New Jersey Center for Innovation, Creativity and Entrepreneurship. My remarks are found below.

________________________________________________

Good evening President Greveson, Dean Konopka and Dean Garamani.

 

Good Evening and welcome to the rest of the DeVry Community.  This of course includes everybody; the students, the faculty, the administrators and the leaders of this school and its business partners.

I use the word community very deliberately because I have to tell you that today has been a very energizing experience for me as a defense program manager as I watched how this community works together.

I have a fairly unique job in the sense that I get the opportunity to see decisions made by our current administration and the contortions of the U.S. congress and watch how that perpetuates itself both into the federal departments as well as into industry.

In light of that perspective I would offer that what I am going to talk to you about tonight is my opinion about the work that this community is trying to accomplish.

Don't Wait to Make a Difference!

Save the shoes! An inspirational short six minute message from a New York City Volunteer Firefighter that is worth watching.

Mark Bezos: A life lesson from a volunteer firefighter | Video on TED.com

Perspective Matters

     A few years back, a close friend of the family sent us a note describing an encounter with another traveler as he toured the unparalleled beauty of Yellowstone National Park.

   

     John, a long-time native of Montana, originally moved to the east slope of the Rocky Mountains as a young man and immediately fell in love with both the land and the people of the Big Sky Country.  The jagged snow-capped peaks, dense forests and abundant wildlife of that region captivated both his imagination and spirit.  Consequently, what started as a trip of discovery became a way of life, and John went on to make his home in what he called ‘Gods Country’ for many years.

      Each fall, in the tradition of the ranchers that work in the heart of Montana and Wyoming, John embarked on an annual ‘riding the fence line’ tour on the back of his Harley Davidson Motorcycle. This ‘fence line ride’ led him from his home, south into Yellowstone, along the Rockefeller Parkway and through Grand Tetons National Park to Jackson Hole, Wyoming and back again.

     Along the way, he would stop to hike, take pictures, camp, visit with other travelers and lose himself in the wonders of that area for about a week.  While he obviously had no real fences to check or repair, he often described the trip as his chance to recharge and renew his soul.  There was just something special about riding through those mountains that made him feel at peace with the world no matter what troubles or pressures waited for him at home.

Choose a different option

Beware of questions that are asked as if the answer can only be 'either this, or that'. Usually its neither of those options.

Potential

"We are better than we know. If we can just be made to see it, then perhaps for the rest of our lives we'll be unwilling to settle for less."

-Kurt Hahn, Founder of Outward Bound

Get in the Ring with the Lions!

     I was recently asked why I used the phrase "Get in the ring with the lions" and if that was reference to the movie directed by Ridley Scott and starring Russell Crowe.  


     While I found the second part of the question colorful and a bit humorous, my statement is actually a reference to a speech given by President Theodore Roosevelt to a gathering in Paris in 1910.


    If you have ever been in a leadership position then I'm sure you've had the occasion or requirement to interact and work with folks outside the core team who have no real stake in whether your effort succeeds or fails.  Some of these individuals feel compelled to be critical of the effort despite their complete lack of contribution, involvement or personal consequence related to the outcome.  


     At best, the engagements with critics like these is a frustrating time sink.


     So when things get tough . . .

A Lesson in Handling People

I don’t even remember what I was angry about at the time.  Nor do I remember the details of what I said to that young Soldier as he stood at parade rest in the cold grey of a German November afternoon.   What I do remember vividly is the look on my new Platoon Sergeant’s face once I dismissed the target of my tongue lashing.  He was clearly not pleased with his Lieutenant’s behavior, but his look was not one of anger.  Rather, his expression was a perplexing mix of concern and irritation.

 

“SFC Mosely, was I wrong?”

That seasoned NCO paused for a moment and then spoke the words that changed forever how I would deal with problems, people and performance.

“No Sir, you were not wrong . . . But that Soldier has a vested interest in your success, and you have a vested interest in his (success) . . . the sooner you figure that out,  then the better off we are all going to be.”

The first thing that flashed across my mind was “Can he say that to me?”

Leadership Perseverance Requires Two Things.

     One of my favorite quotes is from Vice Admiral James Stockdale (1923-2005), as spoken during conversation with James Collins, author of "Good to Great", on his ability to survive nearly seven and a half years of brutal captivity by the North Vietnamese from 9 September 1965 to 12 February 1973.  

     "You must never confuse faith that you will prevail in the end—which you can never afford to lose—with the discipline to confront the most brutal facts of your current reality, whatever they might be.”

     These words effectively capture the very essence of organizational leadership responsibility in times of crisis and tough circumstances.  While most leadership situations are not as dire as those faced by those imprisoned as a POW, his words illustrate one of the most fundamental aspects of successful organizational leadership; leaders cannot afford to dwell on what is not possible, but rather must maintain their focus on success while managing the "brutal facts" of their organization's current situation.

     A quick primer on Medal of Honor Awardee, Vice Admiral James Stockdale can be found here: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/James_Stockdale

    

Make a Difference

Commencement Address
DeVry University, North Brunswick, NJ

LTC Michael J. Devine III

June 2009

     Thank you Dr. Greveson, Dr. Donaldson, for allowing me the absolute privilege of being able to speak to these outstanding graduates, their family and friends, and the faculty and staff of your university.

     I’m excited to be here because today is the culminating event in a team sport that is, without question, one of our nation’s greatest strategic advantages – the ability to produce thinkers and problem solvers who are capable of truly making a difference.

     Graduates - today is your day and I hope you really excited about that. So let me ask you, are you excited about that?

(Cheering)

     I suspected that was the case.

     So let me start by saying Good Morning to the Faculty and staff of DeVry University. Today is also your day. I hope you are looking closely at this tremendous group of graduates and that you see the same thing that I do – the immense potential of our nation’s future. Because of your hard work, mentorship and commitment to making a difference in the development of your students you have delivered a piece of that future. Thank you for what you have delivered.

(Applause)

Youth Leadership Experiences Shape our Potential

     It is an inescapable fact that every person is simply a product of their experience, first guided by family and friends, but later by life and personal choice. 

     Our character, our values, even our basic decision making processes were indelibly marked by the leaders who passed through the early course of our lives.  These individuals served as beacons during our journey towards independence, responsibility and establishment of our role and place in life.   They were parents, teachers, coaches, older siblings, Boy Scout troop leaders and many others who may not have even realized that they were serving such an essential role.

     It is easy enough to search through the archives of our memory to find those individuals whose personal light has left a lasting impression on our future.  Some deserve accolades for their impact while others may have left fingerprints we prefer to forget, but their influence on our lives remains nonetheless, and hopefully we learned from both.