Be a dream weaver...

I write these messages every day about what people should do to live up to their values. Today, I’d like to pause and talk about the opportunities I’ve had throughout my career to live up to my dreams. Professionally, I’ve had the good fortune to work and dream with some great colleagues in the gaming industry – especially the teams of HR pros who shared in the dreams of turning great resort ideas into realities. More recently, my consulting partner and I began planning and making unique online training a reality for managers and supervisors, something I’ve dreamed about for a long time. I’ve also had wonderful volunteer opportunities to dream with other HR leaders around the world about improving the profession, and to work with some really committed dreamers to make successful reentry a reality for ex-offenders. And personally, I’ve been able to dream and grow with my wife for what will be 44 years tomorrow – the result is a great family and the reality of being a proud grandfather to two amazing young people. We all have dreams, but the best of them are dreamed with others to become wonderful realties; thanks to everyone who has dreamed with me over the years – you’ve helped to make so many dreams come true for me and others. Find someone to share your dreams with today.

Yoko Ono Lennon (born 1933): Japanese multimedia artist, singer, songwriter, performance artist, filmmaker, and peace activist

Listen to your inner voice...

The news – both real and fake, is so loud and overwhelming these days that you can’t hardly think: all those political ads make it hard to discern where the truth lies. And the 24-hour news cycles are so endlessly repetitive that you’re not sure when anything happened: or if it still matters. There are projections based on polls that nobody trusts, and commentaries that are often just one person’s point of view. If some or all of this happened at work you’d quit, or the perpetrators would get fired. At the end of the day you need to quiet all the noise and listen to the very faint voice of your own instincts, common sense and intuition. Just because someone says anything’s so doesn’t mean it is – it’s up to each of us to learn enough to know if it is. It would be helpful if leaders had integrity, spoke the truth and were honest, transparent, curious, and empathetic – that’s what makes for employee (and voter) satisfaction, loyalty, and respect. Keep the noise down so people can find and listen to their own internal voices; keep things simple and straight-forward so they can relax, think clearly, and perform. While some may think these are trying times, they’re also full of challenges and opportunities to make a difference. Now’s the time for each of us to find out how. Let your internal voice help you find the way today.

Jon Favreau (born 1966): American actor, director, producer, and screenwriter.

Stay focused...

Most people I know have been isolated, distanced, and masked for much of the last 8 months: that’s a long time. No surprise, then, that yesterday’s paper talked about Covid-19 fatigue and the worry that people are starting to get lax in their safety efforts. It’s hard to stay focused this long on anything, especially with a silent killer like Covid-19 that’s mostly out of sight. Maybe that’s why this virus is surging all across the US, with more than 500,000 new cases in the past week. I’m well aware that many people don’t think this pandemic is real or all that dangerous; I know many question the need for restrictions, saying this isn’t that bad. But whether you think it is or it isn’t, you better live every day like it may be your last because now, more than most other crises we’ve lived through, it very well may be. Many leaders I talk to worry about this fatigue and they’re pretty much agreed: talk about this with your employees, discuss the many ways you can support and remind one another about why and how to stay focused, listen to their concerns and worries and let them vent, and learn and gain strength from those around them, and talk about ways they can support one another. Those kinds of engaging discussions can and will help us all to remain focused today.

Ray Charles (1930 – 2004): American singer, songwriter, pianist, and composer

Exercise and nutrition matter...

We were greeted by several of our neighbors when we returned to Las Vegas last week. Our neighborhoods here and back East each have small homeowner’s associations, so we get to know our neighbors really well. On Saturday, our next-door neighbor came out to see us and we noted how great their two teenagers looked: it seems that when the lockdown started last March they decided to change their nutritional habits. I imagine lots of people all over the world have altered their habits during this time and many have used this time to stay or get fit. While I haven’t been really disciplined, I too have been exercising more and eating healthier. And since everything we do is habit-forming, it’s good (even if you start now) to make sure what you do is what you want to be doing. The news has lots of stories of individuals and families recreating more (close to home), planning and implementing home and landscaping projects, and, of course, changing their eating habits. When managing onsite or remote workers, consider having group discussions about and celebrating things like these that people are doing in these Covid-19 times – it’s a great way to build team spirit and camaraderie and help improve your team’s overall well-being and performance.  Make a habit of supporting good habits today.

Wilton Norman Chamberlain (1936 – 1999): American basketball player who played as a center and is considered one of the greatest players in history (p.s. I was and still am a Boston Celtics fan and always used to grind my teeth when they played against Chamberlain)

The truth should set you free...

Life is complicated these days by the endless campaign advertising that is swirling around us and the unending pandemic cases that are again surging. Email and snail-mail boxes are filled with incredible political assertions and communities are roiled by increasing Covid-19 cases – all of which leave many confused about what’s real or not. Last week I turned off the TV because the competing political ads confused the truth, and friends have shut down their FB accounts for the same reason. I wonder what would happen if company leaders stretched the truth so bizarrely to their employees and customers: the test would be their resulting trust and. It just seems to me that the truth should not be stretched – give people the real facts and let them decide; whether they choose to believe or agree with them or not is their prerogative.  In the end, facts do not cease to exist because they are misstated or ignored. We teach that principle to our children and should apply it to our leaders and institutions. Facts, like the truth, are what they are and should not be stretched (a la Pinocchio).  Be proud of what you say today. 

 

Aldous Huxley (1894 – 1963): English writer and philosopher

What goes around, comes around...

Loyalty, like integrity, is often what you say or do when nobody, or a certain somebody, is around to see it. Like: doing what you promised, honoring someone’s wishes, celebrating someone’s accomplishments, following up on someone’s question or request, or just thinking good thoughts about someone. I could write here about all the wonderful examples in business of leaders doing and saying nice things about someone who’s not there, and how that looks and feels to those that are. But after traveling and flying yesterday for the first time in nearly 8 months, I’d like to mention how people were acting in the airport or on the plane: in that environment, loyalty, like caring, is about doing what you’re supposed to do even when nobody notices. Everyone wore masks, and nearly everyone had one covering both their noses and mouths – there were signs and announcements everywhere to do that, but it wasn’t like anyone was checking or enforcing that. People just seemed to do those things because it was the right thing to do, in general, and for the people around them and those they’d come in contact with later. There were more people than I expected, but that simple act made traveling okay. We’ve all got to be safety conscious and trustworthy for those who are present or not if we’re ever going to get back to a more normal existence today. 

Stephen Covey (1932 – 2012): American educator, author, businessman, and keynote speaker

 

Stand by me...

My generation grew up with Old West stories and movies where loyalties were earned and treasured. It’s a theme that resonates in life and business and makes us yearn for the days of strong personalities, handshakes and commitments, the things that loyalties are built and based on. One doesn’t, however, want to get carried away with either too much or misplaced loyalties and abandon integrity or common sense: keeping your eyes wide open is always a smart practice. And you also don’t want to turn your back on loyalty in search of some shiny new penny: the grass is rarely greener someplace else. But if you know what you want and are looking for, are honest in assessing the give and take that goes on in all facets of our lives, and genuinely act in an ethical and humble manner, you’ll most likely find and give loyalty in appropriate measures. This is generally true with family, friends, and work relationships both in normal times and in these crazy Covid-19 times. Good leaders know this and work hard to build working relationships that are mutually beneficial, and which create loyalty. Thus, when you find it, remember that the whole point of loyalty is to appropriately stick with those who genuinely stick with you. The result is two-way trust and respect, the kind you can always count on. Don’t settle for anything less today.

Larry McMurtry (born 1936): American novelist, essayist, bookseller, and screenwriter whose work is predominantly set in either the Old West or in contemporary Texas.