Each Saturday, I write about five things I learned or found interesting from the past week. This week’s list is quite insightful. I think you are going to enjoy these lessons and learn a lot from them. Let’s get started.
The Leadership Arc
I am currently reading Carlo Ancelotti’s wonderful book Quiet Leadership: Winning hearts, minds and matches. In the very first pages, the winner of 25 trophies identifies his five-stage process of leadership. Ancelotti called this The Leadership Arc.
- Courtship – When the organization is attempting to acquire your services.
- Honeymoon – You are being given time to establish yourself and instill your culture.
- Success and Stability – This is the achievement of results. Depending on the organization and its expectations, you want to stay in this stage as long as possible.
- Problems – Eventually, the Stability begins to show cracks in your skills and relationships. You will either fix these and restabilize or proceed to Stage 5.
- Break-up – The inevitable parting of the ways. This can be instigated by either party.
Can you relate to this cycle?
How Do You Turn Around A Losing Culture?
On Friday, August 16th legendary Hall of Fame football coach Jimmy Johnson was a guest on The Herd With Colin Cowherd. Colin asked Jimmy what was needed to turn around a losing culture.
Johnson replied, “The same way Dan Campbell is doing it here in Detroit. Work and be in a physical football team. That’s what breaks it because if you work them hard enough, they get to believe in that they’re going to win. So that instills the confidence that they’re going to win. So hard work and be in a physical football team. If you’re not a physical football team, you’re not real sure if you’re going to win or not.”
Johnson teaches us that there is no shortcut to turning around a losing culture. The road to a winning culture is paved with hard work, struggle, and confrontation. But Johnson reminds us that you persevere, the reward will be the confidence needed to develop a winning culture.
You can listen to the full interview by clicking HERE.
How To Choose The Right Leader For Your Organization
As reported in this article from The Athletic, Ohio State Buckeyes head coach Ryan Day has selected Will Howard as the team’s starting quarterback. The following are just some of the reasons why:
- Continual Improvement – Since spring practice and into preseason camp, Howard has improved in his ability to process what is happening on the field.
- Work Ethic – The continual improvement is a result of Howard’s work ethic. Day said, “A big part of it is when you can anticipate what’s going (on), instead of reacting. It makes all the difference in the world, and he has a good handle on it and a big part of it is the work ethic.”
- Personal Sacrifices – Howard has lost 14 pounds this year allowing him to be faster on the field.
- Decision-Making – Howard limits unnecessary mistakes and makes good decisions with the football. His passes are accurate and puts the team in the best position to succeed.
- Relentless Preparation – Offensive coordinator Chip Kelly said, “Will is a film junkie. He’s always in the quarterback room watching something, going through, working on calling plays out of the huddle because it can get really wordy.”
If you are looking for a leader, look for someone who continually improves, works hard, makes personal sacrifices and good decisions, and relentlessly prepares.
World Record Highest Altitude Ski-Base Jump
Long-time readers of this site know my fascination with world records and what is required to achieve them from a leadership perspective.
Earlier in August, daredevil Joshua Bregmen jumped from an altitude of 5,716 m (18,753 ft) of a mountain in Solukhum, Nepal. A video of the feat can be seen by clicking the image below. Afterwards, I will provide 3 leadership lessons from this incredible accomplishment.
We learn the following three leadership lessons from Bregmen’s world record jump:
- The Importance Of Preparation – Bregmen and his team spent over two weeks onsite preparing for the jump. This included hiking and getting used to the altitude. Preparation will allow you to go to new heights as well.
- Remove The Obstacles Preventing Your Success – As part of the preparation, Bregmen and his team spent much of their two weeks clearing the course of debris. For leaders to exceed expectations, they must be equally diligent in removing the barriers preventing their success.
- Your Success Should Benefit Others – The purpose of Bregmen’s pursuit of the world record was to raise money for charity. Generosity is a force-multiplier for high performance.
It’s Raining…. Fish!?
Now from the sublime to the ridiculous.
Speaking of the importance of preparation, smart leaders always prepare for the unforeseen and unexpected. Recently, a New Jersey couple’s car windshield was destroyed by a…. fish falling from the sky!!!! Yes, you read that right. Watch the video below for an explanation.
I found the brief interview revealing. The couple’s concern was whether their insurance company would believe that first, a bird would capture this fish, and then second, drop it from a high enough altitude to destroy their windshield.
This is where preparation comes in. The couple had obtained insurance, and then had the car equipped with video and alarm capabilities. They had truly prepared for the unexpected.
Have you and I?
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These quotes will take 15 minutes to read and a lifetime to apply. Let’s get started. You’re about to get smarter and better as a leader! #CommissionsEarned