Day #5 of Leadershape and we are in the home stretch. Today is the last full day and then it is home to Dallas on Friday afternoon. I have to say, I am looking forward to seeing my family, but I will certainly be sad to see my time with these students end.
Even though I've facilitated the Leadershape curriculum numerous times, I inevitably have new "ahas." Today I had an "aha" around an excerpt by Colin Powell. I've seen it a million times, but today I actually understood it. I'll share it and then, I think, I actually have an interesting test of your creativity. Check it out.
I love this excerpt. Powell does such a nice job of capturing the danger of complacency. We strive to develop systems, at home and in the work place, that are rapid and efficient. It might be tasks such as doing laundry, feeding the family, cleaning the house, or something work or community related. In our effort to be efficient,we might not see Powell's observation, that "obsessive routine' begets conformity and complacency.""Never neglect details. When everyone's mind is dulled or distracted, the leader must be doubly vigilant. Strategy equals execution. All the great ideas and visions in the world are worthless if they can't be implemented rapidly and efficiently. Good leaders delegate and empower others liberally, but they pay attention to details, every day. (Think bout supreme athletic coaches like Jimmy Johnson, Pat Riley, and Tony LaRussa.) Bad ones, even those who fancy themselves progressive "visionaries," think they're somehow "above" operational details. Paradoxically, good leaders understand something else: an obsessive routine carrying out the details begets conformity and complacency, which in turn dulls everyone's mind. That is why even as they pay attention to details, they continually encourage people to challenge the process. They implicitly understand that the job of a leader is not to be the chief organizer, but the chief dis-organizer."
So let's be creative and be honest with ourselves. Today, let's stretch our creativity to identify conformity and complacency in our own lives. What system have you put in place at home, in your community, or in your work place, that while highly efficient is responsible for fostering complacency?
More importantly, what are some ways you might shake it up? Jump in on this one and play. It will require some real thought on your part, but it is a great exercise in both leadership and creativity. Who knows, I might even throw in a prize for good measure.
Signing off until tomorrow...
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13 comments:
WHEW! At 6:51am, I am not sure if I am awake enough for this one yet...but I fear not being able to return later today to comment on it, as I have a full day of classes and have plans after.
Gosh, this one's hard. I honestly cannot think of anything right now. If I dont get back here later today, hopefully I can comment on this topic tomorrow.
Julie - Thank you, thank you!! For giving the address. I appreciate it sooooooo much!
Susan
I'm back and should be good for the next few months ... until I decide to move again, and have to go through setting up internet again!
Susan - you are welcome!
I have lots of catching up to do here (Mon-Thurs) ...
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Happiness is not a matter of events; it depends upon the tides of the mind. - Alice Meynell
Being honest with myself and all of you, this one spoke most directly with me. I cannot begin to express how much my happiness (and joy - KTK) have fluctuated over the past 2 months. And, through all of the ups and downs, I have noticed one constant theme - I can quickly change, either for good or bad, with simply focusing in on making my mind THINK either good thoughts or sad thoughts.
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"If you won $58.00 in a scratch-off lottery, what would you buy to improve an element of your home?"
Right now I'd use it to buy the wireless router that I'm bound and determined to get so that my laptop isn't wired into the wall near my modem!
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GROWTH
I think we, as an HLA community, did a superb job of collectively recognizing ways in which we are growing ... may ways which can more "qualitatively" measured than anything else!
With everything being said, I will just say that I agree with everyone's thoughts / contributions!
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conformity and complacency
I just started a new job, in a new time zone, and am living in a new apt and driving a (relatively) new car ....
I look around at my apt and see nothing but disarray right now - and I realize that I like the disorganization that this part of my life has - since I really need to be "put together" in my professional life right now.
Complacency is definitely butting its big head into my "down time" though. I've vowed to start being more active with my life (goal fishing here) ... but when I come home, the couch is just so much more inviting. I'm struggling right now with breaking that bit of complacency ... ok, more than a bit.
I hope I am answering this one right! Forgive me if I dont I have had a very looooong morning!
I WILL NOT leave my house without making all of my beds and cleaning up. I do this because I do not want to come home to clean and if I dont clean our house would be a shack.
Unfortunately, this routine which makes me feel elated when I come home to a clean house has its drawbacks.. I am ALWAYS 5 minutes late for everything (I get sidetracked cleaning) and some days I never get to leave the house. I recently noticed that I have broken plans to take my girls somewhere because my house wasnt finished yet. It makes me sad to see them let down. I have now decided that this is becoming way tooo deep and I sound in need of a shrink!!! But who isnt?
I have decided that if I stay up later at night I can do some of the house chores so in the morning I dont have as much to do and then I can get out and enjoy my time while still coming home to a CLEAN house. Or maybe start delegating chores more to my sloppy kids LOL
If I missed this one .... Just know that it made me feel good to get it off my chest LOL:)
Have a great day HLA!!!!
My complacency is definitely full tilt during the week in both my morning and night time routines.
Each day begins with the alarm going off and me getting the cats fed, hopping on the computer for a few minutes before waking Bal, then while he is showering/shaving/etc...I iron the clothes for all three of us for the day. Then I go get Lily who is typically stirring and put her in the highchair to eat breakfast which is typically one of two or three items and watch (GASP) television at 6:30 in the morning while I jump in the shower and get myself dressed. Then it is out of the highchair to get dressed then scooted out the door so we can get to daycare and work on time. I leave no time built in to play or even really just be together in the morning. And where I could use some creativity (what food I serve) I tend to go with what is fast and easy.
In the evenings I pick Lily up from daycare, drive home and go straight to cooking dinner while Daddy and Lily play or keep themselves entertained. After dinner we play for a little while and then bath, and bedtime routine (which is ROUTINE).
I clearly need to get creative with my routine and infuse some creatively into our lives. I know kids love routines but sometimes it is good for them to not go to bed at the same time every night, or not get to eat in the same chair each night.
Maybe tonight we'll let Lily eat at her new Princess table...wouldn't that be fun?
Excerpts from the passage from Colin Powell have great relevance to the ice rescue class I took last night. In particular:
"Never neglect details. When everyone's mind is dulled or distracted, the leader must be doubly vigilant. Strategy equals execution. All the great ideas and visions in the world are worthless if they can't be implemented rapidly and efficiently.”
This make me think of a multi agency (fire, EMS, police, etc.) rescue operation. The leader, or IC, of the situation has a huge responsibility on his hands. Neglecting details or letting his mind become distracted by the “I have to do something NOW” mentality could be fatal. Further, the best laid plans on paper must be able to be implemented rapidly and effectively to have any hopes of a successful outcome. While the IC delegates commands and coordinates rescue ops, he also has the job of “Chief dis-organizer.” Going back to the “I’ve gotta do something NOW” mentality, the IC must be able to keep check of his workers who insist that running into an unsafe structure or diving into ice cold water without the proper gear is somehow the right thing to do. He must take the seemingly organized thoughts of these workers in the heat of the moment, process and reorganize them in a safe, effective manner.
All I can say in this quick moment is it's a good thing I am not in a position that requires this kind of leadership! AYH!!!
More later.
Maybe I'm having a hard time embracing Colin Powell's statement because...
1) I don't see myself as person in a position that requires me to be a leader. 2) I'm being to literal as always. 3) I thrive on routine and am pig headed about trying to except something different. 4) I need more time to have an aha moment. 5) I don't have any systems that I consider highly effecient so how can they cause complacency? Though I know I must be complacent about something.
Okay. When I was thinking about this I concetrated on the strategy equals execution. I can want to be an artist and create art but if I don't have the time, energy or passion to execute it then I won't therefore my ideas will not be produced.
In being stuck in my routine of going to work, taking care of kids and a house I don't make the time to create OR give my mind that creative push that it needs to even come up with ideas. Is that complacency? Disbanding that routine would give me time to draw but I wouldn't be able to pay my bills. Not being lazy on the weekends. Now that is complacent.
Did I ever tell you about the sociology/psychology class I took in college? It was so far out of my league (much like todays topic) but I had to have it to graduate so I stuck it out. I remember telling my professors, "This class is way over my head but I'll be here everyday."
That's all I have for today.
Katie K here checking in from DC.
Cheryl, you crack me up!
Happy day, HLA!
Just a quick note -
I just received 2 packages for this weekend's Super Bowl Snack Thrown Down
AZ Lori & Melanie I am have received your boxes.
Good luck!
I agree with Cheryl...
and re-reading the quote and looking up complacency (twice) is all making my head spin... I'm glad first and foremost that I am the CEO of the Robinson Estate, because I certainly think that strategy, execution and conformity and compacency are all words that need to be simplified for me to grasp if I were to use them throughout my daily routine.
Call me crazy... *C*R*A*Z*Y * but I sing to myself and make silly poems that rhyme. I dance for no reason...I make games out of mundane tasks (housework or filing at work), and I multi-task to put variety through my day. I no longer call myself a perfectionist, rather that 'I strive to do the best I can in all areas of my life'. And I've learned when no one can make a decision, I step in and give my 2 cents worth... because what risk am I really taking... most people are relieved that someone else said or did exactly what they were thinking!!
Cheryl (and Peggy for that matter)...
Give yourself a break. You knew exactly what today's topic was driving at and you hit the nail on the head By engaging in the same weekly (and weekend) routine, it is likely, overtime, that we slide into complacency.
As Heather also pointed out, our work week's can require us to be highly regimented and "efficient", and by simply "disorganizing" a single aspect of our typical day/night something new and creative can come to pass.
Claudia, I come to your house to be creative! :)
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