When putting a team together do you consider skills and values? Do you prefer one over the other? Most high performing teams have a similar set of values. Two articles below relate to Alex Anthopoulos and his journey as the GM of the Toronto Blue Jays. Take some time and consider how you evaluate skills and values.
Tag Archives: Leadership
Passionate Team Members
Have you ever read the Animal School fable? If not, I have attached it below. Too often, in business or life we fail to maximize the potential of our teams by failing to put the team members in roles they are passionate about. Following your passion is one of the keys to success. Not everyone knows what their passion is and needs to discover it along their journey. Take time along your journey to understand what you are passionate about and choose to do more of that.
The Animal School: A Fable (by George Reavis)
Once upon a time the animals decided they must do something heroic to meet the problems of a “new world” so they organized a school. They had adopted an activity curriculum consisting of running, climbing, swimming and flying. To make it easier to administer the curriculum, all the animals took all the subjects.
The duck was excellent in swimming. In fact, better than his instructor. But he made only passing grades in flying and was very poor in running. Since he was slow in running, he had to stay after school and also drop swimming in order to practice running. This was kept up until his webbed feet were badly worn and he was only average in swimming. But average was acceptable in school so nobody worried about that, except the duck.
The rabbit started at the top of the class in running but had a nervous breakdown because of so much makeup work in swimming.
The squirrel was excellent in climbing until he developed frustration in the flying class where his teacher made him start from the ground up instead of the treetop down. He also developed a “charlie horse” from overexertion and then got a C in climbing and D in running.
The eagle was a problem child and was disciplined severely. In the climbing class, he beat all the others to the top of the tree but insisted on using his own way to get there.
At the end of the year, an abnormal eel that could swim exceeding well and also run, climb and fly a little had the highest average and was valedictorian.
What Johnny B Taught Me About the Key to Success
I met Johnny B after I graduated high school and was in a Mechanical Engineering program at University. Johnny B and I met through mutual friends one summer – Johnny B was also in Mechanical Engineering but at a different University. Johnny B not only did well at school, he was also a world class rowing athlete. About my size but a cardio machine. Through Johnny B I learned the key to success was to be passionate about your goal. Johnny B would get up every morning, go to the rowing course and practice for hours before school. I learned about the discipline required to be a world class athlete – diet, exercise and rest. I learned about VO2 and how to measure progress. Johnny B was a world class athlete. He went to Olympic qualifiers but never broke through. As I got to know Johnny B, I started to listen more. You see, it was Johnny B’s father that woke him up in the morning, drove him to the rowing course and got the scull out. As I looked into it more I learned that Johnny B’s Dad was actually the driving force. Johnny B’s Dad was a rower as well. In his Dad’s case though, he broke through and competed on the world stage in the Olympics and other competitions. I understood that Johnny B was chasing his Dad’s dream and his Dad’s passion. Johnny B’s Dad passed away and within a few years Johnny B had found another sport. His dream was to compete in the Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii. Johnny B got up in the morning on his own, trained vigorously and had huge gains in the sport. And then the unexpected happened, Johnny B had a stroke. It came out of nowhere. Between the ages of 41 to 44 , Johnny B had three strokes, the second of which led to Johnny B being partially blind for months. Johnny B didn’t stop because he had found his passion, not his Dad’s. Johnny B finally qualified for the Ironman Triathlon in Hawaii at the age of 50. He competed and placed fifth in his age category, achieving his dream. Johnny B taught me that the key to success is finding your passion, not someone else’s. Whatever happened to Johnny B ? He moved on from the Ironman Triathlon dream and opened a local rowing school for children. Everything came full circle. If you aren’t passionate for what you are doing , keep looking. That is when you will truly reach your top performance.
The Mirror and the Window
Too often when things are going well we stand in front of the mirror, admiring ourselves and thinking how successful we have become. This happens on the leadership journey as well. I have found we don’t often look in the mirror when things are not going too well. We look out the window and wonder “What is wrong with everyone, don’t they get it?” Next time, try the reverse. When things are not going as expected look in the mirror and ask “What could I have done differently?” When things are going well, look out the window and congratulate everyone on doing such a great job.
Spots on the Ceiling – Creating a Safe Zone for Bad News
To be a successful leader your team must be comfortable in providing you with timely updates. Everyone is eager to provide the latest good news but how does your team handle bad news ?
My greatest teacher in this has been my daughter. We had just finished a bathroom renovation. One of my greatest concerns through the process, being an Engineer, was to properly size the exhaust fan so we wouldn’t get moisture buildup and mold. Measurements of the room, calculations of air changes and fan selection complete and I was confident we were ok although I was considering upsizing to the next fan. In the end there was no need to upsize and we completed the renovation.
A couple months later I noticed some spots on the ceiling! Not possible, I calculated everything. First step was to repaint the entire ceiling with stain reducing paint and the next was to look at ripping open the ceiling and putting in a larger fan – I knew it! Before I went too far my wife relayed a message from my teenaged daughter – the spots were from hair colouring and not mold. She was just worried to tell me because of the reaction.
At home, as at work, my reaction to someone “not following the plan” or “not having the necessary discipline” or “not working hard enough” was not always constructive. I still work at this. One of the first messages for my teams is that there is no good news or bad new. It is all information we need to provide on a timely basis so we can react. Whether at home or at work when presented with bad news – Listen and don’t jump to conclusions, share the pain, don’t say “I told you so”, watch your body language, absorb the information and then work together to a solution. Reacting in the wrong way will stop the flow of information and you may find yourself needlessly spending time, effort and money on the wrong solutions.
Definition of Leadership
First you follow, then you lead
