Musings at Altitude

Things that made me smile this past week:

(1) the joy of new jobs from two people who have been waiting for a while for those new jobs to come

(2) the passion from a new startup from someone who has been waiting for that perfect opportunity to do something special once again

(3) the wisdom from special counselors who in their own unique ways know exactly what to say in exactly the right way to lift my spirits and provide me the encouragement that I need

(4) the affirmation and appreciation for path and plan that comes from very unexpected sources

(5) the effectiveness of the perfect message delivered in the perfect way resulting in the perfect bond between two special partners

(6) the timeliness of the right passage read at just the right time to provide just the right answer to a specific challenge that has been burdening me

(7) the reminders of obligations to family and friends and the patience and understanding from both as priorities are aligned and commitments are made and honored

We all need these smiles. More importantly, we all need the joy, the passion, the wisdom, the affirmation, the appreciation, the messages, the passages, and the reminders.

I hope you found all of these too!

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I’m starting today out smiling.

Refreshed.

Revived.

Reminded of God’s purpose and God’s plan.

Remembering those little things and those not-so-coincidences that got me to this particular place and time.

Rejoicing in what’s happened and what will happen.

Renewed.

What an awesome way to start out the day!

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What’s the difference between those who get beat down by the day to day happenings in business and those that get amped up under the exact same circumstances?

Attitude.

Plain and simple.

Those that get beat down let the events weigh on them heavily.

Those that get amped up use those very same events to lift them up and to motivate them to that next act of aggression.

Business is 90% struggle and then 10% pure ecstasy! 

Those that get beat down focus on that 90% struggle.

Those that get amped up know that the 10% is coming and step it up to get to that ecstasy even faster.

Those that get beat down let the drama of the day overcome them.

Those that get amped up use that very same drama to unite the team and create an even greater sense of purpose.

Give me a team of over-achieving, amped up, drama defying dreamers with attitude, and spectacular things will always happen!

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I hit max load over the last 2 weeks.  I had meetings beginning at breakfast to late dinners, and whatever non-meeting hours I had before passing out at night, I spent those precious moments trying to ease the load of the next day before hitting it again usually only 5 hours after ending the day before. 

During those tensest of times, the emotions about business rapidly rotated between shear excitement, then great despair, then sighs of relief mixed with a few “you got to be kidding me” moments. 

Unfortunately (to some), I live for that roller coaster, and with every dip in the track, I’m leaning forward anxiously to see that next big climb to an over the top experience in business ecstasy.

I’ve had all of these emotions in the last two weeks…and it’s still coming!  And the highs have been incredibly high with spiritual moments at times.  And the lows have been desperately low with the anxiety that any of us would feel when things seem so wrong and the rightness is just out there on that business horizon but seemingly so far away.

I’ve had folks tell me they want stability, and sanity, and a sense of normalcy in order to feel good.  I can’t live that way!  I need the intensity of high peaks and very low valleys, and in those most intense moments, you truly understand yourself.

It’s been an awesome ride these last few weeks – top 10 in business roller coasters for me!

I’m anxious to see what’s next…not months or years from now…but minutes, hours, or just a few short days from now!

These are the rides you dream of!  These are the ones you’d even pay to ride!

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When you’re listening to pitches all day long, what separates:

• those you want to listen to from those you want to run from
• those who really seem believable from those who seem suspicious
• those that nail what they are talking about from those so far out there that you want to laugh
• those that have something but lack a little confidence from those who have nothing but seem to have total belief in what they may be selling
• those that you want to reach out and help from those you want to push back out the door as fast as possible
• those you want to spend a lot more time getting to hear the rest of the story from those who you have no interest of hearing anything more after the first few minutes

When I look back over the many, many pitches I’ve heard over the last few days, each discussion was polar – positive or negative; believable or not; very exciting or incredibly mundane; high potential or obviously lame.  None were in the middle.  None.

And yet, folks came pitching regardless, wanting desperately to have anyone that would listen buy into what they were saying, what they were promoting and what they were building.

What differentiates the completely believable entrepreneur from the absolute nut case?

About a 3 minute window to create interest, establish context, overcome bias, and establish which side of the polarity you’re on.

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As I think back over my career, I’ve been blessed with bosses who put an intimate understanding of the mission as a top priority for me when I joined a new organization.  They felt (some even specifically said) that it was critical for me to know who I was serving and how important my individual contribution and our team’s collective performance would be to effectively serving in that particular mission environment.  The unspoken desire was for me to feel so tied to the mission that all the long hours, all the separations, and all the sacrifices that would ultimately need to be made would be purposefully delivered because I was anchored and committed to that mission too.

During my time in the military, a sense of purpose driven by the mission was easy to achieve.  We had enemies.  We had clear threats to our country and to our way of life.  We had great examples of heroism and patriotism to model our service against.  We had training…lots of training.  We had inspections…lots of inspections.  And we had reinforcement…constant reminders of the incredibly important service we were providing even though part of a very large team performing that mission.

As I transitioned out of the military and into civilian life, I still looked for the mission.  I still wanted that sense of purpose.  I still wanted a connection that transcended the day to day job and made it something meaningful based on what we were providing, who we were serving, and who benefited from the products and services we were delivering.  And equally important, I wanted to be tied not just to the team, my bosses and the company I worked for, but also directly and intimately to our owners, our customers, and our partners.  For some reason, that takes the commitment to a much deeper level.

Creating that incredibly strong sense of purpose isn’t hard.  It’s happened for me time and time again because of very humble leaders that wanted me focused on those we served rather than those overseeing me in the service.  Each one of them allowed me to see beyond the bureaucracy (which was frustrating) and directly experience the joy of knowing those who benefited from our hard work (which was fulfilling).

In these continuing tough times, we need more of that humble leadership today.  We need champions within the culture that drive folks away from the water cooler chats and directly into the mission serving discussions.  We need reminders of the sacrifices that must occur to achieve the desperately needed results.  We need bonds created between those who serve and those being served.  And we need smiles in appreciation for jobs well done, both from those serving and those being served.

Once again, it’s not hard.

We just have to do it.

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Some folks are always right.

Others often right.

A few are rarely right.

And a sad few are never right.

The best leaders I have worked for are folks that are often right, but I’ve never worked for someone that was always right.

I have worked for several people that were rarely right, and unfortunately, each of them thought they were always right.

I completely enjoyed the times that I worked with leaders and peers that were often right, because most of them were open to input and then adjusted when they were wrong to be right.

I stayed extremely disgusted when I worked for folks who were mostly wrong but thought they were always right.  The decisions made and the resultant consequences led to rework at an extraordinary level, and they led to customer relationship challenges that customer centric folks just shouldn’t have to deal with.

Being right is about having the right answers all of the time or even some of the time.

Being right is about having the courage and humility to work with others in a way that the best answer for any given situation is arrived at and then supported by all on the team.

And being right is about understanding when you don’t have the right answer and admitting that you need help to get to whatever that right answer may be.

Of the many leaders I’ve worked for in my nearly 50 years of life, the ones I’ve cherished the most are those who welcomed input, sought out the right answers to the tough situations we may have been in, and ultimately admitted when a decision once made may not have resulted in the perfect outcome.

I hope I’m that way.

I’m certainly not bright enough to be right from the very beginning.

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I feel very confident in business meetings when I know the team or know the partners and customers.

I feel pretty confident in personal meetings with other business leaders too.

But I have lots of insecurities.

When I talk in front of a large group of people that I don’t know.

When I teach a class at church and the class is full of brilliant theologians.

When I present a vision or plan in front of a group of new team members and they don’t know me and I don’t know them.

When I make an in person cold call to an important client or partner and I know everything I say can directly affect the opportunity or the relationship.

There are certain times where I have all the confidence in the world.

And other times where I seem to have very little confidence at all.

And yet I get through each situation.

Most of the time with an awful lot of prayer before the meeting occurs.

We all suffer at times from insecurity.

But we all have to overcome it in order to meet mission, to deliver what’s expected, and to provide for and protect those who depend on us daily.

Just remember that those on the other side of that table or out in the audience are feeling that same exact insecurity in situations just like yours.

Then smile and start the conversation.

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I’m naturally suspicious of no brainers.  I’ll spend a significant amount of time digging deep, questioning all my assumptions, and rethinking each possible scenario just to try and prove that the no brainer is actually something that may not be so certain after all.

Every now and then, my extra effort in due diligence turns up something that does indeed prove my suspicions correct.

But most of the time, my digging turns up nothing.

Although it does delay any positive contribution that would be coming from the no brainer.

So why do I hesitate?

Because that one time that I may turn up something could save thousands to millions of dollars by checking everything twice.

My goal is to minimize the time for second guessing while still allowing my significantly suspicious mind to ask and re-ask the right questions.

When I figure out what that perfect amount of time is, I need to make sure I don’t stay mired in my suspicious doubt any longer than that.  Instead, if nothing of note is found during that second phase of investigation, I need to ignite the fires of excitement, launch fast, and take advantage of whatever awesome promise comes from that obviously not-so-obvious opportunity!

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Abraham Lincoln is quoted as saying, “If I had eight hours to cut down a tree, I’d spend six sharpening my axe.”  What a great statement about preparation!

I was thinking about that this weekend as I spent these past two days in preparation for the week(s) ahead.  And this happens every weekend.  We have about 24 hours (two 12 hour days) each week to prepare for about 60 hours (five 12 hour days) of work during the week.  And then we do it again.  Some of us prepare by standing down, relaxing, reviving, and getting prepared for the chaos and tension of the week to come.  Others spend the weekend catching up, reducing the tasks sitting in the inbox, and easing the burden of the magnitude and sheer number of tasks that may be waiting in the week ahead.  But in some way, we all prepare for the week ahead by recovering from the week before and anticipating the things to come.

Coach Paul “Bear” Bryant is quoted as saying, “It’s not the will to win that matters – everyone has that.  It’s the will to prepare to win that matters.”

I can’t remember a weekend where I didn’t spend some significant portion of time thinking about and planning for the week ahead.  When the week begins, I can easily tell how well I prepared, and I can see a big difference when I didn’t have the will to prepare or didn’t spend the needed time in preparation for the things that hit me immediately in the new week. 

Ben Franklin said, “By failing to prepare, you are preparing to fail.”

I wasn’t blessed with great intelligence, extraordinary skills, or mental nimbleness, so I’ve always had to prepare longer, work additional hours, and worry more than most folks.  That’s the only way I’ve ever known how to effectively prepare for the tough issues that lay ahead or the intensity of tasks that were certain to come.  In that preparation, I often times had to prioritize work over family or work over personal time, but I felt I had no choice.  If I didn’t, I was preparing to fail.

Henry Ford said, “Before everything else, getting ready is the secret to success.”

One of my biggest challenges in life is my desperate desire to procrastinate.  Although I work long hours, I haven’t quite got the clue as to how to work smartly and how to prioritize my hours so that those things requiring the most focus are the things at the top of my list.  For some reason I always do seem to eventually get ready and be ready, but the tension gets high and the nerves max out as the last minute preparation creates great anxiety in route to that success.

I did take a break from any preparation today to watch the Daytona 500 with my 15 year old.  So maybe it’s best to wrap up this posting with a new quote based on a NASCAR theme – “By not taking the necessary time to prepare, you automatically start at the back of the pack giving the others at least a 20 car length head start.”

PS.  The top three quotes came from leadershipnow.com and the last one came from motivational-inspirational-corner.com.

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