Play to win...

During my gaming career, we opened a new resort every four years – that meant we’d spend 2 years at the previous opening, getting things settled down, and then the next two years planning and opening the next one. We were constantly building on what we’d learned and done, and always looking for ways to improve the process. It was version control on steroids. I talked to someone yesterday about those openings: he’s involved in an upcoming one and wanted to know what we learned along the way. I started laughing and said the answer to that question might take a long time. So, I focused it in a bit and told him that the most amazing improvements were in technology – in 1989 when we opened the Mirage there were very few computers and applications; Bellagio opened shortly after the commercial internet really started to take off in 1996 and we were able to use network and client server applications; Wynn Las Vegas was the first resort to use online programs for application tracking and self-service technology; and Wynn Macau upgraded all of that to mobile apps. I’m an HR guy who got a full ride along that technology highway, taking lots of risks and always trying new things. And I learned that good risks often lead to great results. Don’t coast along with your past wins today.

 

Ronald William Howard (born 1954): American film director, producer and actor.

Think it through...

In quiet times I think up a lot of creative things… and rarely do anything about them. Now I’ll admit to having done a lot of new things in my time – computer applications, clever handbooks, innovative training programs and such, but I often wonder about all the other things I let slide. On Facebook you see so many clever ideas posted there every day: it seems like people with time on their hands this past year were especially innovative. So, that’s the thing: when you have a good idea, or one of your employees has one, don’t just laugh it off. It’s a perfect segue into an engaging conversation: discussing the idea, getting everyone’s input, and thinking long and hard if it’s worth pursuing.  My friends at UNLV’s International Gaming Institute have been doing that with students for several years and the number of patents they’ve received for hotel and gaming innovations is to be applauded. Likewise, the number of amazing ideas that employees come up with is inspiring too. So, don’t let creative juices go to waste: kick them around and try to follow up on the good ones. That’s how to innovate great new things today.

 

Theodore Levitt (1925-2006): Economist, Harvard Professor

Be inquisitive...

Some of the greatest ideas for change come from employees: they’re the ones closest to the job and know best what improvements are needed. Good companies listen and adopt the best of them. The 80/20 rule applies here: good designers and builders will usually get 80% of the final project done right, but it’s hard for them to anticipate everything. Once you have employees and customers, they’ll find the remaining 20%, and this is often the difference between good and great. I’ve seen front desk agents rearrange the cabinetry to bring the things they need closer to where they need them; the front door greeters and valet attendants in one of our new mega resorts noted that the way the cabs and rideshare cars got on and off property was so convoluted that the entire driveway had to be redesigned. Give your employees the power to question their workspace and practices – don’t get upset if they tell you didn’t get things perfect the first time: listen to the people on the ground and they’ll show you how to fix it every time. Progress often comes in increments and that process always starts with a ‘what’ or a ‘why’. Listen to those questions and you will uncover great improvement opportunities today.

 

Indira Gandhi (1917 – 1984); Indian politician who was the daughter of Jawaharlal Nehru, and the first and, to date, only female Prime Minister of India

Give it your all...

During my career in the gaming industry, the companies I worked for received nearly 4 million applications and resumes: from them we hired 125,000 employees. That’s more than 30 applications for every job we had available. That’s a lot of competition. Same is true for the number of people who want to become professional athletes: far more players want to get picked than spots on all the big-league rosters. The competition is huge. And just from my own experience, the reason some succeed, and others don’t, is attitude. Some have talent, but the vast majority of those who make it are the ones with desire, hustle, and the proven capacity to work harder than others. That’s what companies and sports teams (and anyone else that has to pick one person over others) look for.  Some come with great references or reputations, but the ones that last are those that give 110 percent all the time. Anyone who manages anything looks for that. But today the ratio has changed: there are more jobs than people looking to go to work. Even so, smart companies and hiring managers still are looking for the ones who will work harder, care more, and maintain a great attitude, if hired. Don’t lower your standards just because there are so few applicants. Continue to hire for attitude today.

 

Don Zimmer (1931 – 2014): American infielder, manager, and coach in Major League Baseball for a total of 65 years.

Play well together...

As a kid from a small town in upstate New York, my favorite sports teams and athletes were from all over, and tops among there were the Boston Celtics and Bill Russell. Listening to their games on my transistor radio at night in bed, I thrilled at how Russell, basketball’s first “big man’, dominated the NBA, not so much by how well he played, but how well he got his teammates to play. Images of those winning teams (Russell’s teams won 11 league championships in his 13 years of playing) stayed with me throughout my career: I often recalled how he, as the team captain, worked to make everyone on the team excel.  That inspired me to come up with ideas that my HR teams could then stretch to make happen. Like when I first proposed using computers to do all of our work online, there were lots of skeptics… but we kept at it, even when the experts said we couldn’t or wouldn’t succeed. Effective leaders use their vision to paint a picture of the future, create detailed plans that everyone can use to get there, communicate clearly about what tools there are and how to use them, and involve others in the drive to succeed together. It’s all about teamwork. Two heads are better than one.  Everybody wins or nobody wins. I knew I was good when people told me how good my staff was. Measure your success by how well your team does today.

 

William Felton Russell (born 1934): American former professional basketball player, five-time NBA Most Valuable Player and a 12-time All-Star

Never let up...

Leaders are measured by whether they’re effective, and one of their primary responsibilities is to also make the people who report to them effective. Easier said than done, I know. That’s why they should recognize and reward their employees when they see them doing something right and, at the same time, encourage them to raise the bar a little higher in the future. That style of leadership includes coaching, where the leader helps their employee(s) to discover how to improve their performance, little by little, over time. Service businesses are extremely competitive and are always measured by the latest service(s) they provide – that’s why resting on one’s laurels – whether by an individual, a team, or a company, is a sure-fire way to fall behind the competition. And that’s why focusing on continuous improvement is so important. If you’re a leader, keep your eye on the performance of your team; if you’re the team member providing the service, always strive to be better. It’s a constant pressure, but the rewards are almost immediately found in your customer’s faces: that kind of feedback and the lessons to be learned from it are invaluable. Celebrate those successes with high-fives all around, and then straightaway encourage and coach your team to be better. Every day. Every time. No exceptions. That’s how to raise the bar today.

 

Mariel Margaret Hamm-Garciaparra (born 1972): American retired professional soccer player, two-time Olympic gold medalist, and two-time FIFA Women's World Cup champion.

Give people the benefit of the doubt...

I loved reading all of James Michener’s books – sweeping novels with stories and characters spanning many generations.  Unlike the fictional people in those books, folks like us have to face life’s challenges in real time and don’t get to rewrite the storyline if it doesn’t suit them. When things don’t go right, we’re often forced to redo them, sometimes more than once. This happened a lot this past year, as leaders struggled to make decisions in a quickly changing environment where previous norms and rules failed to apply. They agonized whether to keep people on or lay them off, often with employees they’d known a long time. Long-term relationships were broken in some instances; in others, businesses failed in lieu of breaking those relationships. There were too many instances where the only choices were bad ones. And now that we’re seeing a light at the end of this tunnel, it will inevitably shine on the loss of trust that many companies had worked so hard to create. Whether people will give their previous leaders  a second or third chance to reestablish that trust will rest on how those decisions were made and whether they were communicated with appropriate transparency and empathy. Use the experiences and lessons learned throughout this pandemic to help rebuild that trust today.

 

James Michener (1907 – 1997): American author

Give it your all every time ...

I remember when we were kids and there were pick-up games in the neighborhood – two of the bigger kids would be the captains and they’d pick their teams from the rest of us. I liked to play and be with the other kids, but I wasn’t particularly big or good… so I was one of the last ones picked. Over time I made up for my lack of sporting skills with an overabundance of eagerness. And by the time I got into high school, I was a team assistant, a writer on the school paper, and a volunteer in Key Club. I learned that enthusiasm, optimism and flexibility were just as important as physical skills; I was the guy who always saw the fun in things, and what I lacked in size I more than made up for with passion. If you always bring you’re A-game to whatever you’re doing, that’s enough: nobody expects more than that and it will always be appreciated. It’s tough being the smallest, but that shouldn’t stop anyone from participating fully and being the best at whatever they bring to the field or table or project. Besides, it’s not whether you get a hit but rather that you played the game. Be a good sport today.

 

Nick Hornby (born 1957): English writer and lyricist, best known for his memoir Fever Pitch and novels High Fidelity and About a Boy

Recognize and celebrate great work...

This past year has been full of amazing stories as the world battled Covid-19. About the extraordinary sacrifices made by communities, businesses and families; or about the development and distribution of multiple vaccines in record time; or about how businesses are now searching for and transitioning to a new post-pandemic normal; and so many more. In each, there’s a common theme of teams of regular men and women working incredibly hard to successfully bring about changes like retooling operations, adapting to remote work, adopting new Zoom-like technologies, changing management’s mindset, going from retaining top talent to furloughing or laying them off, starting over now with smaller or altogether new teams of employees, and so much more. The professionals running the companies I work with (and so many others) are working non-stop to bring their businesses back to life and finding that many of the changes they were forced to make then are now becoming permanent. One that sticks out is the change from a “leave your problems at the door” mindset to one where managers are encouraged to be more empathetic about how employees are dealing with all of these changes. When it’s all said and done, don’t overlook the sacrifice, grit, sleepless nights and long hours that have and will continue to make all of this possible. Recognize and celebrate the hard work that your people are doing today.

 

Krishna Ramanujan: Science Writer for the Cornell Chronicle, the university’s main news outlet 

Here is the amazing story this quote was taken from: https://news.cornell.edu/stories/2020/10/cornell-teams-work-tirelessly-limit-covid-spread)

Earn your Wings every day...

The companies I worked for always had a policy for posting all available jobs – from dishwasher all the way up to senior level executives. Employees appreciated the opportunity to express their interest in being promoted: we always discussed their requests, gave them reasons if they weren’t selected, and, when that was the case, provided guidance about what it might take to get promoted in the future. If they were selected, we discussed what it would take to be successful: while they would receive a title change, acceptance and respect had to be earned. Because employees watch and take time deciding whether a new leader is ‘good enough’ and invariably make comparisons to those who preceded them; they often give new leaders the benefit of the doubt but will often withhold final acceptance until they are certain. The best new leaders spend time listening before taking any actions, understanding that they will have one chance to make a good impression. If you have new professionals or leaders working for you, coach them to be patient, to learn the ‘lay of the land’, and to go slow while building competence and confidence; that’s what it takes to earn respect and acceptance. But remind them that their leadership status will never be given on a silver platter. Years ago, the old Eastern Airlines company had what I thought was a great slogan: “We have to earn our Wings every day”.  Earn your Wings today.

 

Ellen Johnson Sirleaf: 24th president of Liberia

Don't procrastinate...

I once worked with a guy who was much better at making speeches than decisions.  Professionals, however, are called on to do both, and one without the other isn’t good enough. Whether you’re a manager, or just work for one, you know how many things need to get done each day – the most difficult part is making the decision to act; the rest is all about judgment and tenacity. Judgment comes from knowledge, common sense, preparation and practice; tenacity comes from within and is the desire to see things through until they’re done. When employees have questions – leaders have to answer them truthfully and in a timely manner.  When employees need direction – leaders have to step in and explain the roadmap about where they should go and how to be aligned with others. When employees have questions or are confused – leaders need to coach them to discover the answers they seek. When a difficult conversation needs to be had – leaders need to be tactful, respectful and firm. And when employees do things right – leaders need to lead the celebration right then and there. None of these things can wait: if you hesitate, they stack up and that just makes deciding to act, and acting, that much harder. Don’t delay and don’t make others wait; decide what needs to be acted upon today.

 

Amelia Earhart (1897 – 1939): American aviation pioneer, author, and the first female aviator to fly solo across the Atlantic Ocean

Think before you act...

Early in my career I interviewed a maintenance engineer and asked him: “what was the mark of a skilled tradesman”; his answer: “measure twice, cut once”. I thought he would have said something about good training, lots of experience… things like that. So, when I looked surprised, he went on to tell me that good professionals plan and prepare for their work in a careful and thorough manner; in other words, they think before they act. All these years later, I still remember that answer and, even though I’ve heard that same comment many times since, I’ve always remembered it as simple but wise advice. We’ve all learned lots of things in our careers – some in school and some on-the-job, but whenever we’re called upon to act there’s nothing better than to think before proceeding. Consider the circumstances, plans, goals and people involved… every situation is different, and you want to be sure about what you’re doing. Whatever you do, people will be affected, and others will be watching. A calm and considered approach will always be seen as a prudent one. And a professional acting like this will be seen as confident and competent. That’s what you want to be today.

 

Benvenuto Cellini (1500 – 1571): Italian goldsmith, sculptor, draftsman, soldier, musician, artist, poet and writer

Always try to do your best...

You’ve probably been told, many times, that as a manager, everything you do or say is “on the record”: your words and actions always represent the company. Lots of managers don’t walk around and talk to employees, rather they take regular routes around and miss more employees than they touch: that’s not being as good as you can be. They often avoid employees because they don’t want to be “put on the spot” and have to give answers to questions: that’s also not being as good as you can be.  Communications – genuine and accurate – are so important to a company’s employee relations culture, and those must be practiced by managers wanting to do their best every day. They don’t have to be perfect, just trying to be their best.  That’s the measure of a natural leader: like baseball players, they don’t always get a hit, but they have to give it their all every time they step up to the plate. They’re the ones that set the best examples… by always trying. Be prepared, mingle with employees and customers, spend more time listening than talking, and always say what you mean and mean what you say. If needed, practice in front of a mirror or with colleagues. Then get out there, do your best, and lead by example today.

 

Joe DiMaggio (1914 – 1999): America baseball center fielder who played his entire 13-year career in Major League Baseball for the New York Yankees

Take some baby steps...

What a difference a year makes. Last year on this date the world essentially stopped.  These past 12 months have been like nothing anyone has ever known and now it’s nearly over. Back then we all took a deep breath and tried to fathom sheltering in place for a month, maybe two. That wore thin and in spite of our fears we itched to go out. But as people got sick and died, businesses closed, families and friends became isolated, people became depressed, and the news got increasingly worse, we hunkered down for longer than we thought possible. So much has happened. And yet the news today is positive: if we’re careful and cautious, the end is in sight. I’ve got family and friends who are starting to believe that summer plans and visits may happen again. I’ve got colleagues who are chomping at the proverbial bit to being hands-on leaders and coaches and mentors with their employees and students again. I’ve got clients who are hoping we’ll come see them again. Our political leaders believe that if we all work together, we may be able to go out for dinner soon and plan for a July 4^th cookout. One year without hope makes these hopes that much sweeter. Much like the bear who’s hibernated all winter, these first tentative steps will be weird but welcome. Whatever we feel about what we’ve been through, we should be proud of what we’ve overcome today. 

 

Phillip McGraw (born 1950): American television personality, author and the host of the television show Dr. Phil.

Keep on keeping on...

Years ago, I had an industrial accident and was laid up for 2 years: out of work, depressed and nearly at my wit’s end. During that time, I met lots of others with similar conditions and learned how important it is to keep going. I know it’s different, but there are lots of people who after struggling this past year have that kind of will. As companies start to reopen, many of their employees or applicants will be from this group. Look for the ones with the determination to fight their way out of their circumstances: they’re the optimistic ones whose eyes are on the future. They may be nervous, anxious and scared, but the future to them is that glass that’s half full. If you’re a manager in a company that’s starting to reopen, keep your eyes open for people like this, be empathetic about what the past year was like for them, support them through this transition, and help them continue to find their way through. They kept going and are most likely proud of it, so congratulate them and tell them how proud you are to have them on your team today. 

 

Lindsey Vonn (born 1984): American alpine ski racer on the US Ski Team who won four World Cup overall championships and the gold medal at  the 2010 Winter Olympics

Be proud AND humble...

Boasting isn’t necessary – yet almost everyone does it. I don’t recall any overt mention of this growing up: there were lots of mentions about being humble, but to me that’s not the same. My father was a quiet guy who never talked about himself, but my mother was always telling people how smart her children were or what we’d accomplished: those were two different models. But this really came into focus when I started working; there were leaders who told who they were, and others who just showed you what they could do. I find it’s the same with applicants – we expect them to tell us what they know when it’s often better if they show you who they are. I learned that people don’t have to show off their power or expertise… when it’s there, you know it. It’s the same with confidence and competence – no need to show off, just show it and let others decide. And all of this holds true with teachers and community leaders, neighbors and friends, and work colleagues and people you hang out with.  The world is so full of hyperbole that it’s refreshing when it’s absent. When actions mean more than words. Be quietly proud of what you are, and how you show it, today.

 

Ralph Ellison (1914 – 1994): American novelist, literary critic, and scholar best known for his novel Invisible Man, which won the National Book Award in 1953

Live the dream...

Like all of us, I have several drawers and cupboards that are filled with stuff: such is the life of a packrat.  Every now and then I’ll look in one of those spaces and quickly close it with a sense of helplessness: can’t say I’m proud of that. But when my daughter started a new business called Calm in Chaos, I learned that there’s help for people like me: she comes in, assesses the chaos, and organizes the cleanup and reorganization. It sounds simple, but as I watch the way she goes about her work, I realize that simplicity is not a simple thing. We each have our specialties which, to others, look complicated: I loved my HR roll, but it was not one that most of my friends and colleagues wanted. To me, it made sense, much the way my daughter’s work appears clear to her. We each have things we’re good at and love doing and it’s a leader’s job to discern and nurture those, meaning they have to be open and attuned, listen well, coach as needed, and help their employees love and be proud of what they do. Sometimes it’s the job they have, and you help them make it the one they want; other times it’s retraining and upskilling and repositioning them to where they’re best suited. And at all times it’s supporting them. A leader’s roll is as simple as that today.

 

Sir Charles Spencer Chaplin (1889 – 1977): English comic actor, filmmaker, and composer who rose to fame in the era of silent film

Start getting ready...

There are lots of indications that business leaders are starting to plan for a new normal at the end of this pandemic. Many are planning to add to their depleted teams while others are looking more closely at current staff to see where everyone fits best. Now’s the time to double down on your people, retraining some, upskilling others, and making sure they know how interested and supportive you are: don’t forget all the empathy you’ve shown, and they’ve grown accustomed to this past year. Build on what you’ve all learned this year – how your people adapted and adjusted, did more with less, and worked with less direct supervision. And don’t forget how proud you were of them through all of this – address that on any upcoming evaluations or group discussions. And if you have to search for new talent from outside your company, tell them about what you’re doing for your current staff as a not-so subtle way make them want to join your team: there will be lots of competition for them and this is a great way to better attract and retain them.  This is how you create trust within your organization: make it a cornerstone of your culture. You should do all these things because they’re the right things to do. But just as importantly – you’ll be surrounded by the right people who will proudly make anything possible today. 

 

Misty Copeland (born 1982): American ballet dancer and the first African American woman to be promoted to principal dancer for American Ballet Theatre (ABT)

Don't be afraid to care...

Interestingly, there’s much to be learned in all sorts of circumstances and this past year has certainly provided lots of opportunities for that: especially about balancing work and life. Business leaders at all levels were challenged to learn and adapt repeatedly, and that’s not something any were trained for.  There were lessons from the past that took on new meaning in the context of life and work during this pandemic. Like emotional intelligence: the capacity to be aware of, control, and express one's emotions, and to handle interpersonal relationships genuinely, judiciously and empathetically.  Be honest: how important was that on your list of management skills 12 months ago? Don’t feel bad – surveys show that back then a majority of business leaders put this in a nice to have rather than a required category. Not so today – leaders now need to be attuned to both onsite and WFH employees in order to assess and respond to their needs appropriately and effectively. Meaning, helping them find a reasonable and meaningful balance between the extraordinary pressures, stresses and challenges they're facing in both work and life these days. If we’ve learned nothing else, it’s that we’re all in this together and we need to help each other get through the good and bad times. And that starts with genuinely caring. Memo to self: ask your employees if they think you’re empathetic enough today.

 

John R. Wooden (1910-2010): Basketball Coach and author, considered to be the best ever college basketball coach 

Pursue what you love to do...

When we opened Bellagio, nearly the whole senior and mid-management team had been together for more than 10 years and was hitting on all cylinders. In the midst of that opening my boss suggested we create a yearbook to commemorate the work of that amazing team and all of the new employees who would be initially hired there. It was just like the high school yearbooks we all remembered – with individual pictures signed by friends, group and candid shots showing what everyone did, and a timeline commemorating individual, class, and school achievements. Turns out, that Bellagio yearbook was the largest one ever done by the Herff Jones Company, the people that do them for schools everywhere. We hired a former student editor they’d worked with and recommended, shot 27,000 candid pictures of the entire construction and pre-opening period, took 11,000 of those little individual pictures for all of the new employees, and published a leather-bound edition for each of them as the holiday gift they received one month after opening. On top of all the other work we were doing for that opening, we exhausted ourselves with that great project. And when I now run into people who were working there then, they all still fondly recall their experiences from that opening and its yearbook. Pursue something glorious in your life today.

 

Lawrence K. Fish (born 1945): American businessman 

 

Savor life...

It feels like a huge weight has been lifted off our shoulders after getting our 2^nd vaccination shots more than a week ago: that’s the same message I’m hearing from others who’ve also been vaccinated. The President is predicting enough vaccines for everyone that wants them by June, which is probably why I’m now hearing from clients that they’re thinking business may return to pre-pandemic levels more quickly than originally anticipated. All of a sudden everyone’s optimistic and that’s likely to fuel people’s desires to get back to a more normalized existence. Bottom line: while this pandemic may finally be ending, it has taught us that life itself is a privilege and that it’s a choice whether to live it to the fullest. And whether that means continuing to be safe or not, it’s reasonable to presume that people will start being more like they used to be. But let’s not forget the lessons we learned this year – being flexible and cautious, resilient, communicating honestly about our hopes and dreams and fears, and being empathetic. It’s nearly a year ago that this thing started, and even though we initially thought that it probably might last only a few weeks, in hindsight I’m surprised that we persevered as long as we did. In too many ways we’ve lost so much: lives, livelihoods and time. But now this nightmare may be ending.  Life truly is a treasure - let’s choose to live it to the fullest today. 

 

Andy Andrews (born 1959): American Author and Speaker

Hang out with people that light up the room...

Quotes like this make me think about hiring for attitude and how I generally look for people who are optimistic about life and passionate about what they do. My consulting partner (he’s a clinical psychologist) and I have a test for general optimism and it’s very accurate: it shows that people who are optimistic are flexible, open to change, and look at the glass as “half full”. But it’s not so easy to discern whether applicants have passion for what they do: it’s not as though you can ask someone if they are – they’ll always say yes. You have to watch their eyes and body language when they answer that question – enthusiasm like that is hard to hide… or fake. If they’re passionate about their work, they smile and gesture and light up the room: anything short of that shows they don’t mean it. We all want to be around people like that, and you should make it a habit to hire candidates like that – their enthusiasm is the electricity of life and it will infuse your company or team with energy, optimism, engagement, creativity and enthusiasm. Pick people like that and then train them for the skills you need them to have. Make a habit of hiring enthusiastic people today.

 

Gordon Parks (1912 – 2006): American photographer, musician, writer and film director

Develop your unwavering focus...

A priest at an Episcopalian Church where I was a high school volunteer Head Start teacher helped me discover my purpose and my compass: helping others. And when my education and talent aligned with that, they helped me focus on what I wanted out of my career in HR. As I later recruited students at hospitality colleges, I found that the best among them also each came with a focus on what they wanted from a company and career. Being a recruiter at heart, it’s fun when you find candidates with a passion for what they want: they’re the ones who broaden and deepen their roles beyond the mere job description to make their careers what they really want; they need little supervision and flourish in their jobs. When you’re trying to hire someone, don’t just focus on their resume – talk to them about their aims and goals, and look for the ones who are unwavering in their interests and aims. If those are strong, and their education and talents are aligned with them, grab hold and don’t let them go. That’s the best way to find great talent today.

 

Condoleezza Rice (born 1954) is an American diplomat, political scientist, civil servant, professor and currently director of the Hoover Institution at Stanford University.