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?

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.

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?”

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)