Of irritation, pearls and leaders

Did you know that as a leader you could be soft on the inside [oyster] and still produce hard glistening beauty [pearl]? Pearls form in oysters when irritants such as a piece of broken shell becomes embedded in their flesh. The oyster fights back by covering the irritant with nacre, layers of hard deposit from its mantle tissue. With time, these hard layers of nacre grow to form a pearl.

I read a fascinating article the other day on how artificial mabé pearls are produced. There were some interesting parallels to how pearl farming has some similarities to leadership development.

You have to BE PRESENT to spot or identify leadership potential in others and yourself too [TweetMe]. At the onset of the pearl farming process, divers retrieve the oysters about 5 years old from wild stock areas is the first step of creating mabé pearls. Your leadership is what draws people to you and helps them to grant you the permission to develop them. You have to be available. “They don’t care how much you know until they know how much you care.” Theodore Roosevelt

Now that you have some great people to work with, PREPARE THEM for the their new leadership role. They have to be guided, mentored and encouraged throughout the process. In the case of the captured oysters, they were placed in perforated barrels that are taken out to sea and anchored for about two weeks.

To make the oysters feel at home, a spatula is used to remove the oval shellfish gently from the barrel and place them in a warm salty water bath. This relaxes them, makes them easier to work with. It is crucial that your leadership not only inspires others, but it also provides the RIGHT ENVIRONMENT to grow other leaders [TweetMe]. “You get the best efforts from others not by lighting a fire beneath them, but by building a fire within.” Bob Nelson

With the right environment, the hard work begins. Tough and sometimes irritating moments are bound to crop up every now and then. However, it is important to remain FOCUSED ON THE VISION. For a perfect mabé pearl to be produced, a dome-shaped plastic the size of a one-cent coin is deftly slid deep inside the shell under the mantle tissue. Not comfortable, but highly necessary. “Values are critical guides for making decisions. When in doubt, they cut through the fog like a beacon in the night.” Robert Townsend

As leaders LEARN AND GROW, they constantly have to come back to the vision and plan to ensure that their outcome and ambition are in tandem. You need a place that you can come back to grow, regroup and strategize. There is no need to mentor leaders if you can’t point them in the right direction. The paua oysters are usually returned to the barrels and allowed to grow, eating seaweed and producing coats of lustrous and hard nacre for the market.

When you are gone, it is the leaders you develop that will be YOUR LEGACY [TweetMe]. Paua give their lives as the mabé pearls have to be literally cut from the shell with a diamond saw! The dark paua meat is sold, shells polished and used as backing for the pearls. “A leader’s job is to look into the future and see the organization not as it is, but as it should be.” Jack Welch

What irritants are you experiencing as a leader? How can these irritants be used disruptively to build great leaders?

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Leaders Lean With the Bend

A couple of rabbits chased by a pack of dogs dashed into a thicket and stood there for a moment, panting. “Well,” one said to the other, “do you think we should keep running or stay here until we outnumber them?” (Sarah Castle)

This got me thinking about our response to hardship or conflict. Nature dictates that we make one of two responses: fight or run.

However, I think leaders have a third response; innovate. They roll with the punches. They make sure that they are prepared to deal with the bends that they’ll frequently come across.

A leader will at one time in their life come to a fork on the road. It will be a time to make a very deliberate choice. As you lead, you will be faced with three choices: fight, run or innovate [TweetMe].

To INNOVATE, a leader must make changes in something established, especially by introducing new methods, ideas, or products.  It calls for moving out of your comfort zone. To remind myself how important this is, I always tell myself to burn the box. This way, there is no “safe” haven for me to run back to, as that is the state that I need to move from, one that is restraining me from doing bigger things.

Innovation leans with the bend. When riding a motorbike, it is crucial that you learn to lean into the bend to smoothly navigate through it. If you fight the bend, both  you and the bike will most probably come out second-best.

The same applies to your leadership. You need to understand where your followers are at and guide them safely through the bend. Help them understand and embrace your vision. Inspire them to learn what is needed to achieve the vision. Then together, both leader and follower lean into the bend [TweetMe].

You may chose to RUN away from the challenge. If you keep on running, chances are that you may tire out at some point and drop dead. The challenge you were running from in the first place will have had you! When you become stubborn and refuse to change, you will face imminent death of your dream or cause.

FIGHTING may be the compromise between innovation and retreating. You may end up expending more energy and resources in this state. Why not invest the same in innovative action that may end up as a win anyway?

Your leadership is the driving seat to your destiny [TweetMe].

Will you innovate, run or fight? Please share your thoughts and let’s engage and grow together.

photo credit: Patrick Mayon via photopin cc

Coffee, Soldiers and 3 Leadership Lessons

One day, as I was enjoying a cup of coffee before a flight, I had the privilege to watch a group of soldiers at the boarding gate. They must have been on a United Nations peace-building mission. The over one hundred soldiers queued up, and soon the queue bundled up. Instinctively, starting from the top of the queue, every soldier placed his right hand on his mate’s right shoulder and pushed back half an arm’s length. Order was restored in the queue.

Soon thereafter, there was a boarding gate change and the same soldiers had to relocate to another gate. Did they all troop to the new gate? Amazingly, they did not! One soft command is all it took for them to ‘about-face’ and voila, the last man on the queue was now at the top. It was just fun to watch the spectacle.

This did not just happen as if by magic. They must have undergone a lot of training on how to exhibit disciplined behavior regardless of the external circumstances. What does this teach us about becoming better leaders?

“Quality is never an accident: It is always the result of high intention, sincere effort, intelligent direction and skillful execution. It represents the wise choice of many alternatives.”-William A. Foster

1) Understand your environment

Leadership is all about your understanding of the present situation in relation to your history and future (vision). This does not come easily and you have to constantly adjust your sails to capitalize the most out of the wind powering your boat. You will have to learn new skills that will enable you to relate appropriately with your growing team. In a family, what worked for your two-year old toddler will not resonate with them when they become teenagers. The same applies to your team. Understand each individual before anything else.

2) Teams don’t just happen…

The soldiers were patient with each other as the changes were taking place. They did not squabble, as they knew what was going on was for the good of the team. It was clear that someone [or some people] had invested heavily in fostering oneness in these soldiers. You need to be an accessible leader for your followers to grow. Some members will learn fast or adopt new action readily. Others will take some time to appreciate the big picture. It is therefore important that you patiently build their skills, character and self-esteem.

3) Common values are critical

Finally, their behavior was guided by some common values or standards that were known to all of them. The soldiers were a team, and at that particular moment, they had to work as one to efficiently board onto the aircraft. The same applies to your followers. You must provide the leadership that embeds a value-system your team subscribes to. In addition, “to be the most influential  leader you can be, know your people and what drives them,” notes Tom Schulte in On Leadership and the Knucklehearted Leader

Monitor

These three principles have to be re-visited regularly and fine-tuned to fit the current stage your organization is at. Like a rally car, you cannot expect the tires used on tarmac road to be effective on muddy, off-road tracks. The vehicle and engine may remain the same one on both terrains, but you need off-road tires to get the best out of your driving experience when out in the bush.

As a leader, do you fully understand your environment, your team and values? are you constantly monitoring the terrain and retrofitting your team with the right tires?

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What’s your name?

Never forget, roots run deep.

[Excerpt from my new book soon in a bookstore near you…“Home Bound: Lead at Home in 6 Intentional Steps”]

I recently came across a very interesting but sad description of a family’s lineage. Dr. Kevin Leman* describes his as ‘A Well-Watered Ancestry’. This is not to be confused with the charming, progressive, and healthy type of ancestry. “I come from a long line of drinkers,” says Dr. Leman. “Virtually all Lemans enjoyed slugging down a few cold ones. Okay, not a few. Many.” Not many people I know desire to provide such an ancestry or build a similar foundation for their family.

When we first discovered that we were going to become parents, the joy I felt is indescribable. My heart nearly burst with pride. I was going to be a father! However, questions ravaged my poor mind like a bad storm and tore at my innards like the worst tornado ever. Would I be a good father? How would I take care of the growing family? What if I lost my job, then what? Will the baby ‘steal’ my time with my wife? Would my employer insist on sending me out on mission for extended periods? And many more!

My mind was desperately trying to answer, “What is your name?” It was a desperate attempt to begin molding the definition of my family and the identity that would be its anchor.

To appreciate where we were coming from, we will have to go back to the beginning. Like Dr. Leman, I too had a ‘well-watered’ ancestry, especially on my father’s side. My grandfather loved the tipple, I have no recollection of a single night he came home sober during those days we would be visiting him and my grandmother. My uncle and two aunties also partied hard. Alcohol was a feature in any of our family events, it is a miracle that some of us did not end up thoroughly imbibed at a very tender age!

With this background, I had to break traditions that were not healthy for my life and that of my new family too. It was time to reclaim the dignity of the name. This identity would go against common-speak and stand out for its resilience, integrity, and above all, a spirit of servant-leadership.

Naming our children was not going to be routine, it was not a labeling process. It was a re-birth of my wife and I. We were going to bestow a legacy upon our children. From birth they were going to walk in the promise, a promise that they were made for greatness. Please note that, in greatness, I do not necessarily mean they will become celebrities or some beings with an elevated status. I would not mind if they did, but this was not the primary focus.

Their names were just the first step to a future where they would become people that matter. They would become pillars of hope in a world of pain, deceit, poverty, and mediocrity.

How are you taking charge of leadership in your home? What deliberate steps are you making to become that intentional leader your family deserves?

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* Dr. Kevin Leman, What a Difference a Daddy Makes: The indelible Imprint a Dad Leaves on His Daughter’s Life (Nashville: Thomas Nelson Publishers, 2000), 72.

 

“For unto us a Child is born, Unto us a Son is given; And the government will be upon His shoulder. And His name will be called Wonderful, Counselor, Mighty God, Everlasting Father, Prince of Peace.” Isaiah 9:6

 

One-degree past mediocrity

Many an executive may rank staff management as their foremost challenge in running an organization. Some of their employees do not give any impression of hard enough nor show any initiative. They never seem to make good use of their time in the office. They are mediocre, just lukewarm.

Mediocrity transcends the rank and file of many organizations in both public and private sectors [TweetMe]. These workers are characterized by a common trait; just do what is necessary to get by. In return, they expect the best of remuneration complete with commensurate benefits…health plans, retirement plans, and promotion.

In a bid to resolve this, management tries to invest in training programs for their staff. There will be an optimistic foray into team building activities. The ambition is to transform these mediocre workers into super-performers. Improved performance is desirable for a business’ bottom line, organizational service delivery, or optimal resource utilization.

However, do we pose to ask why these workers mediocre? There may be need to critically look into their past. How were they brought up? They may have been inculcated into a world where everything came to a standstill to serve their whimsical needs. These workers may have been ‘wind-assisted’ into mediocrity. Unfortunately, they are in for a big shock!

Wise leaders (parents) expose their children to learning opportunities (adversities) [TweetMe]. This is not a comfortable place to be, as they have to move away from their comfort zone. “I would never have amounted to anything were it not for adversity. I was forced to come up the hard way,” said James C. Penney, an American businessman and entrepreneur who, in 1902, founded the J.C. Penney stores. 212° The Extra Degree provides us with a valuable lesson…

At 211 degrees…water is hot. At 212 degrees…it boils. With boiling water, comes steam. And steam can power a locomotive. And, it’s that one extra degree that… Makes all the difference.

If you are ‘leading’ a team entrenched in mediocrity, perhaps it is time for you to dig a little deeper into their past. They may have already been ‘pre-wired’ to abhor any creativity or any hard work.

Maybe it is time to rethink your training and team-building processes. Leadership is taking the time to understand where each of your team members is coming from [TweetMe]. It may help you understand their potential to excel. Only then do you identify a system that will inspire them to better themselves. This could be individualized training or even getting them a mentor to walk them through the areas they need to improve on. It may prove to be that one-degree that makes all the difference.

“Don’t think. Thinking is the enemy of creativity. It’s self-conscious and anything self-conscious is lousy. You can’t ‘try’ to do things. You simply ‘must’ do things,” Ray Bradbury

What must you do to take your team to the next level? Remember, you may need disruptive creativity to move the process forward. It may be important to build in some incentives into the process.

When will you start?

What does it take you to get the process going?

What are your expected outcomes?

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Leadership & surrender

If you want to be a great leader and not just a leader, you need to learn to ‘give up’… surrender! You will need to surrender the need to always: be right, speak first, decide, take credit, and be in control. You will be surprised by the outcomes:  greater results,  greater influence, greater satisfaction, and greater significance.

Want to be a great leader? Kevin Eikenberry challenges us with “What You Must Surrender to Lead Best” on his blog, Leadership & Learning. Enjoy the reading and hope you are inspired.

Leaders know when to follow

“You cannot be a leader, and ask other people to follow you, unless you know how to follow, too.” —Sam Rayburn

A key component of any organization is its connectivity with suppliers and partners. Sometimes, however, this connectivity is broken by other parties external to the organization and its intended audience. This is exactly what happened last week. In urgent need to get product costs for an upcoming event, the desired supplier could not be reached on their hard line. Unfortunately, not having a correct email address did not help any bit to bridge the communication gap.

Interestingly, Telkom Kenya – the reason behind this communication breakdown – was featured in a post “Of leadership dinosaurs” a few weeks back. The company found its was into the leading weekly regional newspaper in East Africa for all the wrong reasons. The EastAfrican ran a two-page article on Telkom Kenya’s financial woes. Unfortunately, this is an example of a previous monopoly gone south. Despite France Telecom’s majority shareholding in Telkom Kenya, the future looks very bleak indeed.

Source: The EastAfrican

The irony is that Telkom Kenya has not been able to keep many of its customers connected. Numerous breakdowns of their network, complacency, poor customer care and lack of follow up of new connections are robbing this company of much needed revenue. If only the company could consolidate its existing customers, then maybe there may be hope in the horizon.

Perhaps this is a company that could borrow from Don Mercer’s “Followership: the Corollary to Leadership“ posted in an ongoing international blogathon hosted on “A slice of leadership”. Here, Don outlines the 7 principles that make up the Followership Culture: Instant Response, Initiative, Imagination, Integrity, Inquire, Inform, and Involve.

For one to be a leader, intimate knowledge of followers is critical. Follow your followers, and they will help guide your decisions and strategic direction.

“Trying is just a noisy way of not doing something.” —Ken Blanchard