"If it is to be, it is up to me"

I was facilitating a management team discussion and one of the managers asked the question, "sure, this is all well and good and these are great ideas, but is anything going to come of it? Or will all our work just sit in a binder somewhere collecting dust?"

This comment made me think of a quote from Ralph Stayer, CEO of Johnsonville Foods and co-author of Flight of the Buffalo which goes like this:

If it is to be, it is up to me.
If it is up to me, it shall be.

Many of you have been in similar meetings. Have you noticed that the very people who ask the questions about what will come of the work are the ones who are in the best positions to ensure something DOES happen with the work?

Managers are the make it happen people. We can ensure things go from concept to reality. And we are also responsible for the work that goes wasted and becomes a door stop.

I believe that 99% of managers have the power and potential to turn strategies into realities - and I believe most managers don't do enough to align their work groups to be well positioned to execute plans. Many don't spend enough time creating plans that turn concepts into results. Perhaps it's that we have learned helplessness. Perhaps it is that we are not holding ourselves to a high enough standard.

Who knows. But if your planning meetings go nowhere, look in the mirror. I think Ralph would agree.

By the way, I would have the same reaction to the common lament, "we need to improve morale." Managers determine morale - period. If morale is poor, change how you manage and change how you spend your time so that you can improve the situation. If this notion is not sitting well with you or you are not sure you agree, read the book The Art of Possibility. Good morale lives in the most troubled companies and many of the richest organizations suffer from poor morale. People can be content in the most meager of circumstances and feel dissatisfied while bathed in riches.

If you have an execution culture - it has been created through excellent management.
If you have a strong employee culture - it has been created through excellent management.

Comments

[Lui Sieh]

Hi,

Thanks for sharing this, a very nice post. I agree that the influence one has goes a very long way toward creating positive atmosphere. We simply do not exercise it for many reasons (fear, conformity). For managers however, being invisible isn't really an option. It creates a void that leaves the organization and its people floundering.

Step up and step out. Armchair leadership doesn't work, because no one can go forward while going in reverse. Leadership needs to be in the front.

Cheers,
-Lui

[Guy Harris]

Lisa,

Good insights. This reminds me of a statement I first heard from John Maxwell - "Everything rises and falls on leadership." Well, everything is pretty inclusive. As you said, if morale is bad, look at the leader. If performance is bad, look at the leader. The list goes on and on.

Thanks for the insights. I enjoy your perspective. I heard about you through my friend Kevin Eikenberry and then I saw you mentioned over at Slacker Manager by Phil Gerbyshak. I registered for your newsletter and blog feed today.

Guy Harris

[lisa haneberg]

Great comments. Welcome to MC Guy. Your comment reminds me.... I need to get working on that newsletter....

[Tony Mifsud]

I am a local girls cross country running coach at Dearborn, Michigan Divine Child High School and I have used this quote since 1960 my sophomore year in high school when I met this superb coach from Birmingham H.S Kermit Ambrose used this quote on me about running, just go out there and do it, don't think about it, act on it, he would say to many runners. I feel/believe these are the most powerful two letter words(vowels a,e,i,o,u)used in sentence form known to mankind. This is really an inspirational quote to me which I have abided by for many years, pass it along to others.

BE GOOD - BE HAPPY - BE WELL

GODSPEED

TONY MIFSUD