Make good choices...

The choices we make are important – it’s hard to see that as you’re making them, but they add up and ultimately determine who and what we are.

 

·      Our choices matter.

·      Especially when you 

·      Look back and see how

·      One guided you to the next. 

·      Make good choices for yourself.

 

In high school I volunteered in a Head Start program: that opened my eyes to people’s needs. In college I participated in civil rights and anti-war marches: those opened my eyes to basic human rights. And those led me to a become a human resource professional: that opened my eyes to the potential of helping others. Along the way I was jarred by a bout of depression – that opened my eyes to the power of personal challenges and triumphs. And my career led to hiring of ex-felons – that opened my eyes to the importance of second chances. Each of those stages in my professional journey involved making choices – I always strived to make the appropriate ones, and I now see how each one led to the next. The journeys we each make in our professional and private lives are replete with choices, and each presents us with opportunities to continue to grow, or not. In the end, we should all recognize that our lives are the result of the choices that we make every moment of every day. Consider your choices wisely today.

 

Tulku Thondup Rinpoche (born 1939): Tibetan scholar recognized at the age of four as the reincarnation of a famous scholar of the Dodrupchen monastery, Konme Khenpo.

Just do it...

I remember when Steve decided to build a volcano in front of the new property that would become the Mirage. Nobody was ready for that.

 

·      Ready or not

·      Is not just a kid’s game.

·      It’s a conscious decision 

·      Every day that we work and play.

·      You’ll never be perfectly ready to go.

 

So, we made calculated decisions based on all the known facts. We talked to our colleagues, planned, and prepared. Often, these things are not perfect – but remember, perfection is the enemy of progress. Our construction team reacted with “nobody’s ever built a volcano before”, and therein was the challenge. Many of the things we do haven’t been done before and that’s scary. So, they built a mockup and tested it out – it worked, so they then had the courage to keep going. And even though fire and water and steam are difficult to operate together, they got it right. The biggest problem initially was not building the thing, but not burning the 300 palm trees that were on top of the volcano (and the birds that wanted to roost there), but that’s another story. Was it perfect? No, but nothing ever is. Do your homework every day and be as prepared as you can be. Then, ready, or not, go for it. That’s how professionals’ get ready today.

 

Amy Poehler (born 1971): American comedian, actress, writer, producer, and director.

Get the right tool for the job ...

Hitting on all cylinders is an automotive metaphor that is often used in business. It’s easier said than done.

 

·      Working 

·      Up to capacity

·      Is a great objective.

·      Unlike cars, humans

·      Struggle to make that a reality.

 

This is where effective coaching comes into play. Business leaders and managers try all kinds of schemes to get their employees to work up to their true capacities, but the realities of life often intervene and get in the way of peak performance. Getting high performance from subordinates takes constant focus and a steady hand. Managing is a full contact sport and supervisors must always be engaged – sometimes to guide and direct, other times to inspire and cajole, because workplace situations are changing all the time and leaders must continually read, understand, and adapt to those changing situations. And they must do so that with a steady and calm demeanor, one that creates few surprises. The best leaders engender trust and respect by being calm and respectful. Charles Schulz, who gave us today’s quote, often used a scene in his Peanuts cartoons where Lucy pulls the football away at the last minute as Charlie Brown attempts to kick it – surprises like that wreak havoc (in sports and at work) and the best managers work hard to limit those in the workplace. Whether using a bicycle’s gears, coaching, or situational management techniques, the goal is to always get the most out of every situation.   Sometimes work can feel like pedaling uphill - use all the gears at your disposal when managing your team today.

 

Charles Monroe "Sparky" Schulz (1922 – 2000): American cartoonist and creator of the comic strip Peanuts (which featured the characters Charlie Brown and Snoopy).

Keep the promise...

It’s not enough to have values, you must also live by them. And it’s not enough to be grateful, you must show it.

 

·      Values

·      Guide us.

·      Gratitude

·      Defines us.

·      Live up to them.

 

Our values are goalposts for our lives. And expressing gratitude is not the same as being grateful in your actions. Both are implicit promises of our behavior. Keep your promises today.

 

John Fitzgerald Kennedy (1917 – 1963), often referred to by his initials JFK and the nickname Jack, was an American politician who served as the 35th president of the United States from 1961 until his assassination near the end of his third year in office.

Happy Thanksgiving

Count your blessings…

 

Charles "Charlie" Brown (First seen May 1948): The principal character of the comic strip Peanuts, syndicated in daily and Sunday newspapers by Charles Schultz. Depicted as a "lovable loser," Charlie Brown is one of the great American archetypes and a popular and widely recognized cartoon character.

Be thankful for what you have...

 Wishing you and your family a very happy and restful Thanksgiving weekend!

Being good matters...

There has been a lot of political talk about who is good and who isn’t. Now that the elections are over, let’s see who really is good.

 

·      A good person

·      Is one who keeps

·      Their promises about

·      Doing good things for all.

·      That’s the bar we should set.

 

Whether in politics or business, our leaders should be committed to doing the best for all. That doesn’t mean that everyone gets everything they want: it means that we all share in however much good there is. Life is never an all or nothing proposition, rather it’s about being reasonable, sharing, giving and taking, and making incremental improvements where and when they’re needed. It’s much like the notion of ‘the commons’ in olden days, when people shared some land for the benefit of all, and where planning and preserving for the future was important. When people become polarized, they can’t see past their own narratives, they forget that we really are all equal, and that living or working together is what’s important. Stop and consider what it takes to become a good person, work diligently towards that, become one, and be proud of that. Make that your goal today.

 

Marcus Aurelius Antoninus (121 – 180): A Stoic philosopher who became Roman emperor from 161 to 180 AD.

Take pride in your work...

Please forgive me for getting up on a soap box – a recent experience with my cable provider has me seeing stars.

 

·      Companies

·      Need competition

·      To keep them on their toes.

·      It seems to me that Cable companies

·      Have limited competition and thus no reason 

·      To be thoughtful enough to provide excellent service.

 

Last week my internet service was “down”. A visit to the provider’s website and chat service showed that they were aware of the outage, but not when it would be fixed. I’m okay with that, but not with the fact that they won’t keep users (like me) updated. These are technology companies; but any problem – big or small, requires users to deal with off-shore low-tech call centers whose employees are minimally trained, given no access to real-time system or account information, and limited authority to deal with problems. They’re given scripts to follow and anything beyond those is beyond their capacity. And the field technicians fixing outages don’t seem to have the ability to provide real-time status updates, which sounds incredible to me. Since I presume they could if they wanted to, they apparently don’t think that’s necessary. So, back to my original point, without competition, they’re not motivated to be innovative, thoughtful, or service minded. Despite that, I would hope they’d have enough pride in their work to get this right. Don’t be like these cable companies: take pride in your work today.

 

Booker Taliaferro Washington (1856 – 1915): American educator, author, orator, and adviser to several U.S. Presidents.

Care and compassion matter...

One of the best things to come out of the whole Covid experience was the rise and acceptance of emotional intelligence.

 

·      Self-awareness

·      And awareness of others

·      Is the key to emotional intelligence.

·      That’s what is most attractive to employees

·      In the post-covid world of today and tomorrow.

 

Employees want to know that their leaders know and care about them. The days of managers acting like ‘McGruff the Crime Dog’ or bullies were put to bed by this recent pandemic. How employees were treated as businesses were quickly closing, how managers treated and communicated with employees during the long closure period, and how they were welcomed back (or not) all combine to determine whether companies are fully staffed today. If you’re struggling to find employees, review how you acted during the employment chaos of the past 2½ years. And while employees have long memories, a little extra compassion now can and will go a long way in mending any relationships that may have frayed with your employees. If you want your employees to be happy, practice compassion; if you want to be a happy and more successful leader, practice compassion. Your employees want to know that you care today.

 

His Holiness The 14th Dalai Lama (born 1935): Spiritual leader and former head of state of Tibet.

Nose around...

I’m never the smartest guy in any room. But I’m often way more curious than the others.

 

·      Knowing 

·      That we don’t know

·      Often helps us learn more.

·      Because we’re open to the idea 

·      That there’s so much more to learn. 

 

When debriefing after the opening of The Mirage, it was painfully obvious that we needed to learn more about how computers could help improve our HR practices and processes. We had contract developers build a new HRIS for this opening and were shocked that they messed up something called the source code; maybe more shocking was the fact we didn’t know much about source codes. At that point we hired more consultants to tell us what to do next. While they were making proposals, we became curious about how computers worked and what they really were capable of, learning that computers in the 1990s were bulky and not very user-friendly. The internet was not widely used yet, so most people used their computers only for basic tasks like word processing and playing simple games. We did more research, took some community college courses, and learned about the real potential of computing. That passionate curiosity led to designing systems that radically changed how HR was done. Over the next dozen years, our passion for learning led to one of the first fully paperless back-office systems. What we lacked in talent, we more than made up for with curiosity. Be passionately curious today.

 

Albert Einstein (1879 – 1955): German-born theoretical physicist, widely acknowledged to be one of the greatest and most influential physicists of all time.

Don't be afraid of tomorrow...

The older I get the more nostalgic I become. But I still dream about tomorrow.

 

·      Looking back,

·      We can see all that

·      We’ve done and become.

·      Fortunately, the road ahead 

·      Is filled with endless possibilities.

 

But this isn’t about me. It’s about the process that successful businesses go through to plan their future success. Many new businesses happen because someone with a passion to create has a good idea and people flock to see and take advantage of it. But in this world of short attention spans, consumers always seem to be looking for the next new thing. So, you must keep your business updated enough to continually catch the consumer’s eye and satisfy their expectations. That takes planning about how to get from where you are to where you need to be. You do that with effective market research, continuous team training, transparency, and two-way internal communications. This can result in new and improved products, more focused service delivery, or both. People remember the things they’ve enjoyed in the past, their continued loyalty often depends on how they’re refreshed and updated for the future.  That’s why strategic planning is so important today.

 

Anthony Robert “Tony” Kushner (born 1956): American author, playwright, and screenwriter.