OldGotten

 Somehow, I got old.

I wasn't really aiming for it, but here I am. And, I'm happy to be here. Old, that is.

As I heard another oldie say a few years ago, "I can see the finish line from here." True enough. 

I often reflect on what I might have done better over the years, but I don't perseverate about it. Just a look-back and think-forward process. There is very little about what I did/didn't do in the past that can be changed now. 

What I CAN do is apply that knowledge to the remaining years available to me. I know a few of the things I want to focus on with the days remaining:

> LOVE - those whom God has brought into my sphere, freely and fully.

> WORK - predominantly on those things I deem consequential (and not so much on the other).

> ABSORB - as appreciatively as possible all the blessings with which I have been gifted.

> COMMUNICATE - deeply with others, asking and listening with my full being, probing to learn.

> LEARN - as much as I can, as fast as I can.

> TEACH - what I have learned, generously and often, right up to the last breath.

Not to worry. The homestretch is a nice view.

BloodComms

 It is widely believed that blood is the life-sustaining medium. Blood has three primary functions in our bodies: transportation, protection, and regulation.

Blood transports good stuff (oxygen, nutrients, etc.) into to each cell of the body, and it transports not-so-good stuff (carbon dioxide, waste materials, etc.) out.

Blood also serves as the lead element of the "homeland security" system of the body. It carries around a host of "first responders" that initiate the protective response of the body when unhealthy invaders are at the door.

Blood also plays a regulatory role, serving as the bridge medium between and among all the integrated systems that make up our bodies (respiratory, digestive, muscular, etc.). It helps keep the interface among/between those systems functional and smoothly operating. 

The best leaders I know are superb communicators. They effectively use varying types of communications methodologies as a sort of "blood" of the organization. 

Those wise leaders know full well that the health of the organizational "blood" - communications - is the upstream determinate of the health of the organization.

DestinationNOT

We said our final farewells to another long-time friend this week. Those "good-bye" events seem to be coming more frequently these days.

While painful, attending memorial services always prompt some reflection on the WHY instead of the What and the How.

Clearly, we are all on a journey toward our last day, our last breath, on this planet. None are exempt. 

For some, it's a very long walk. Even so, those long lives are immensely varied in the levels of joy and pain they experience. 

For others, those life-walks are short indeed. Some, even in utero. Through the millennia, countless billions of parents have laid children to rest; from childhood diseases, tragic accidents, casualties of war...

Important to remember is that our life journey is NOT the destination. We are all, every one of us, moving toward that same moment in time: the one just AFTER our last breath here. 

Depending on our personal beliefs and faith, that first breath in the next journey has EVERYTHING to do with WHY we take each step in the current one. 

Either way, THIS is not the destination. 

Safe travels.

Agency

 The wisest leaders I know work diligently to garner buy-in from stakeholders.

Why? They understand that agency is by far a better force multiplier than compliance.

When organizational members enthusiastically and energetically invest in the work (as opposed to being, or feeling, "forced" to it), rather amazing outcomes ensue.

Christensen refers to it as a mindset of "covenant" vs "contract."

Hagel, et al, describe it as "pull" vs "push" leadership.

Schlechty articulates it as gaining the highest levels of engagement.

Agency = High Commitment + High Effort

An aspiration well worth pursuing. 

Maybe that's why those wise leaders are so diligent in that regard.

>>Frustration>>

 We all deal with frustration. Leaders of organizations deal with even more frustration (since organizations are made up of.............humans).

The causes of frustration are simply too many to note. How we choose to deal with frustration is the more important issue. What should we think, say, and do in response to frustration's triggers?

Frustration triggers some typical responses from leaders: Outbursts, harsh words, assignment of blame (to others or ourselves), shutting down (emotionally or intellectually), doing "something" (or "anything") NOW... Anger and reactivity often win the day.

Consider a better approach: Constantly monitor, constantly discuss, constantly assess, constantly plan, constantly deploy, constantly adapt. 

It's called continuous improvement. Getting better, every day, on purpose.

Engaging in the continual habit (both as individuals AND teams) to honestly answer the following questions is beyond powerful:

Are we doing (or attempting to do) worthy work? If not, we should change something.

Are our attempts at worthy work producing good outcomes, at an acceptable pace? If not, we should change something.

Is the work we are doing making for a better future for BOTH us and others? If not, we should change something.

Whatever the subsequent changes made, the power is in the process.

Frustration feels acute, though it's mostly the result chronic problems. Dealing with it on the frontside (habitually rather than reactively - chronically rather than acutely) is by far the better approach. 

But only if BETTERNESS is what we're striving for.

4LeadershipDISes

Leaders have the responsibility of trying to make things better. Almost always, it's a heavy lift. 

Here's one of my favorite definitions of leadership: The craft of moving others by influencing them to do things they would not do of their own accord, or at a pace which they would not undertake for themselves.

Leaders who fail to move organizations toward better futures often fall victim to one or some combination of the 4 DIS-es. 

1) DIStrust - when leaders fail to gain the trust of organizational members or fail to foster a culture of trust in the organization.

2) DISrespect - when leaders signal lack of respect (overtly or covertly) it becomes a cancerous toxin in the system.

3) DIStancing - when leaders disregard feedback, ignore the viewpoints of the customers, or show favoritism to some (which implies disenfranchisement of others).

4) DISsonance - when leaders dishonor the time of others by allowing meetings to be ineffectual time-wasters and engagements with members to be superficial or off-putting.

As leaders, we need not delude ourselves into believing anything positive will ensue if we foster, or allow, those four DISsing dynamics to exist - or worse, to persist - in our organizations. 

Get better. Every day. On purpose.

WillAbility

 Getting better is a personal choice. We can choose to improve ourselves, either personally or professionally, along several domains: intellectual, physical, or emotional-spiritual.

Two elements determine our success in affecting better futures for ourselves: 

1) Will - Do we have the strong sense of need for a change in status and the drive to put processes in place to make that change?

2) Ability - Do we have the moxie, the skills, the discipline, the capabilities to actually make the changes we deem important to make?

Almost every human on the planet has the Ability piece in their skill set. The most frequent barrier, however, to personal/professional improvement comes in the area of Will. 

These same two dynamics are fundamental to organizational improvement. Wise leaders attend carefully to both aspects - Will and Ability - if they hope to foster a culture of continuous improvement.

But, oh, when they do!!!!

When is it too late to start getting better? When we're dead.

When is the best time to start? Now. 

GO!