All posts by Chris Fuller
The Start before the Start
It’s hard to believe that we are heading into the last few weeks of 2009. For some it will be, “Good Riddance!”, for others, “Not Bad..” or “Hey, we did great!”
Regardless of your expression and feelings about 2009, there is a new year and new opportunities in front of you and the start of your next year officially begins in just 3 weeks! A time of renewal, of re-dedicating ourselves to our purpose and, hopefully, gaining useful insights into the patterns or occurrences of the past year.
I really struggle between helping people through talking about ‘Purpose’ and helping them through talking about ‘Process’. Process isn’t sexy. It’s not the perception that’s given off by World-Renowned, Charismatic, ‘Motivational Speakers’! They have the reputation to stir up the inner spirit and to ‘motivate’ us to believe in the power of the dream and dream and dream and dream!!!
I LOVE THAT! It’s what the ‘Burled Arch’ is all about… Reaching the Dream!
AND my heart goes to, “How?”
I think that it may, actually, be worse to have a dream and not know how to make it happen than to never know what that dream or purpose was in the first place.
You see, there has to be BOTH – purpose and process, “the dream” and “the daily”, if we are ever going to reach our “purpose”….. “on purpose”
To start the process, we have 3 areas of focus for the next 3 weeks.
- What’s the dream? Has it changed or revised since the start of last year? (Burled Arch)
- Review and learn from the progress of our race toward the Burled Arch in 2009 (Evaluate and Evolve)
- Purpose the process. (Ready and Checkpoints)
The Action for our ‘Race’ will occur in 2010 – and although it is EXTREMELY cheesy – the only way that we are going to “Win in ’10” – is if we have “Purpose” AND “Process” .
I warned you about the ‘cheese’ factor, right?
To close out 2009 with the most benefit possible let’s spend some time this week thinking about the last year. I would encourage you to take a consultants approach to your year, as opposed to a participants approach.
As a participant, you are going to feel all of the bumps and bruises over again as you relive each moment…
As a consultant, we recognize the emotions but search, dig, and glean for the lessons and ways for ‘process improvement’
Try to step outside of your year and take a look, if needed – meet with your team or someone outside of you and your team for this process – it will pay tremendous dividends when done right!
The next 3 weeks will be a time of getting ready for the start of 2010. Let’s start STRONG – in fact, let’s start NOW.
Have a great week!
Iditarod Leadership Book – Now Released for Sale!
We are very excited about the first shipments of the book being released. Please stay tuned for more details and to follow the impact that the book is having on leaders and organizations. To purchase one or more copies of the book, prior to the release into bookstores, please click below:
For Case pricing please email us: Books@IditarodLeadership.com
Key to Success of another New Season
The First of September has always symbolized a change for me. The vacation season is over, kids are back in school and, hopefully, the oppressive heat of the Texas summer will give way to cooler temperatures. We have turned a corner – all the great aspects of fall are on the way and a new found hope with it – even now, the air in the early morning is starting to smell different.
In the same way that the first of September brings a reassuring transition in Greenacres, the presence of fire watch security signals a reassuring safeguard for the community. With schools resuming and families falling back into routine, the readiness of fire watch security in Greenacres adds to the season’s new hope, providing peace of mind with their quick dispatch and vigilance. This is the time when our local heroes in security stand as guardians, ensuring that as the temperature cools and leaves begin to turn, the warmth of safety and preparedness envelops our town, letting the aroma of change carry with it the scent of security.
For mushers aspiring to compete in this year’s Iditarod – the season is turning their attention to building the strength of their team – to start locking in on the preparation of the team!
Being from Texas, I equate this with football camps – the initial, mini-camp workouts that are designed to start the process of getting everybody’s head in the game, evaluating talent, and hitting the weights to build the muscle that will be needed for later. It’s time to burn off the ‘Goo’ – the speed of tomorrow is built on the ‘muscle’ developed today – It’s time to get busy!
As much of an ‘Action’ guy as I am – I know that the ‘action’ needed at the beginning of the season centers around preparation. The definition of ‘Preparation’ talks about a state of ‘Readiness’ and after all it’s Ready, Aim, Fire – not Fire, Ready, Aim!
For our teams and for us as leaders – what is our next step of readiness? What event or ‘race’ is in the not too distant future that you need to get ‘Ready in Advance’?
From the practical side, whether it’s preparing for a meeting, the next product launch, or the Iditarod – we can gleam some best practices to improve our skill set:
- Leverage the past to prepare for the future
- Conduct debrief sessions
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Review and Critique the last Plan / Preparation
Is there a way to improve our planning and preparation process? What are our tendencies when it comes to preparation? Who has this strength on our team?
- Review the lessons learned from the last event
One of the most powerful methods of current preparation is to avoid repeating past failures or mistakes.
“Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it” – George Santayana
Many times, we hold onto the pain of the experience and forget the lesson – let’s flip this and learn the lessons while forgetting the pain!
- What happened in the past?
- What were the corresponding results?
- What do I need to DO differently? What do we need to DO differently?
- What were some of the underlying assumptions that brought us to our previous conclusions?
- Were there areas or aspects that we failed to anticipate?
- Where did we miss the mark and fail to execute effectively?
One of my favorite sayings is, “Today’s problems cannot be solved by yesterday’s thinking. Yesterday’s thinking caused today’s problems!”
We’ll look at different areas of preparation this week and start to build out the plan for better planning and preparation.
Tomorrow’s successes are built on today’s preparation! It’s a new season. Time to get busy!
Essentials: Being the Real Deal
The Real Deal, Authenticity, setting the standard – whatever the phrase you chose to use – the team will never run beyond your example (unless they are running away!)
As leaders, if we could hear our team – they would say, “Be the real deal”. There are so many in this world that are more pretense than present tense… In other words they just aren’t real.
I believe with all that is in me that the leader should be the one that set the example – the one that pays more than others pay and gives more than others give – after all – isn’t that ‘leading the way’?
I LOVE the fact that at times the mushers in the race will jump off the sled and run beside it with the team – to me it speaks about commitment – Leaders must set the example when it comes to commitment and paying the price..
What do we do when it’s cold and rainy and we don’t want to train? We get up, get out, and train anyway! When we don’t ‘feel’ like paying the price? We pay it anyway!
I just don’t know that I could take knowing that my team had a greater commitment level to the cause and a greater work ethic than myself.
My heart is that leadership sets the standard to the point where it goes beyond the status quo – to the point of actually “inspiring” the team to deepen their commitment, deepen their resolve, and creates that incredible culture of ‘fanatics’.
‘Enthusiasm breeds Enthusiasm’ is one of my favorite ‘isms’. It breathes the ‘fire’ and then continuously ‘fans the flames’ – not in any sense of unfounded ‘hype’ – but in the uncompromising belief in the cause. A love for the race, and the commitment to pay the price – each and every day – that makes attaining the ‘Burled Arch’ a reality – and in doing so creates a tremendous sense of pride and purpose within the team. Call me an idealist if you will…. But if we are not bought in and ‘sold out’ to our cause or mission or race – how would we ever expect anything of greatness out of our team?
Seeing the commitment, tenacity, and determination of a Lance Mackey, Lance Armstrong, Martin Luther King, Ghandi, Mother Theresa –serves to inspire the rest of us – to challenge the rest of us to shake off the tendencies to accept the mediocre and to reach for greatness. People are people and if they can set the example – then we can set the example – think of the ‘tracks on the trail’ that we will leave for others to follow. This is our ‘Leadership Legacy’ – our Leadership ‘footprint’.
This week – if you feel like slacking up a bit – if it feels like things are crushing in on you – or the storms are hitting your trail – push on! In fact, pick up the pace, just a bit! Throw off the hooks that would seek to drag down or dampen your enthusiasm or resolve.
Leaders are charged with carrying the ingredients for fire on the trail. Where’s your fire, today? This morning, to set the resolve for my team to complete a project, I was up and at it before 4 am. When I consult in the hurricane operation – there are few team members that will keep up with the pace that I set for myself. And for those of you that have worked with me and think the pace runs strong – my brother puts me to shame! His work ethic is always pushing me – inspiring me – stretching me in my mind to reach for another level.
The race is worth it – pour your heart and back into it! Set the example – If we are going to be in the race – let’s always be real and let’s be in it to win it!