Management Craft

Who is Gary Hamel? Who is your source of inspiration?

I was talking to a small group of MBA students recently and asked if any had heard of Gary Hamel. Although I did not show it, I was shocked that none had (OMG!). I explained who he was and recommended his site, the Management Innovation Exchange. (OMG!)

I suppose I should not be too surprised, each generation has its own sources of inspiration. I was surprised, however, because Gary is not just a seasoned expert, he is very active and hip in the field of management innovation. He has remained on the edge. It was also a surprise because Gary Hamel seems like the kind of guru that would be mentioned a lot during an MBA program - he is an academic, an author, and a top speaker.

I was going to ask them if they had heard of Tom Peters, but I did not want to get too depressed (and feeling old).

Hamel, Peters, Kotter, Bennis, etc... Aahh.... the greats of my time. What matters is that you are inspired by great thinking. Your source of inspiration might be an artist, a scientist, or a hip-hop mogul. We can thank folks like TED.com for broadening our possibilities.

But seriously, if you are a manager or leader, you should know about Gary Hamel. Go check him out here.

Hip hop AND Hamel.....

And the antidote to envy is.......

To envy is human. But envy robs us of so many possibilities including:

• Achievement.
• Peace.
• Humility.
• Connection.
• Happiness.
• Our best thinking, our best work, our best life.

So how do we get past our feelings of envy? To explore this, we need to think about what's going on when we experience envy. Envy occurs when we compare ourselves to others and when we feel unsatisfied, outdone, or a lack of confidence. Comparison and regret.

What's the antidote, then? You can't make a chocolate cake without chocolate. Remove either the comparison or the regret and you will prevent envy. And here is a fool proof way to quickly transition out of feelings of envy.

Become a fan. Instead of comparing yourself to someone else, show admiration. Give congratulations. Take the initiative to show support. Don't do this for show, become a fan for real. Shift your thinking from regret to being a fan and you will zap envy in its tracks. It can happen very quickly but only if you are sincere.

Envy is a killer. Envy will get in the way of your goals and dreams. Make it go away. Poof!

#Management Team Pact - A Real Example

I was cleaning out some stuff in my office because we are moving from our apartment in Houston into a Loft and I am downsizing the amount of "stuff in boxes" I will take to the new digs. I have moved lots of boxes many times and it is silly and wasteful.

I found a 20 year old letter that a senior management team crafted and signed. This group of leaders was not modeling great teaming and this was their way to acknowledge the issue and make a commitment to be better together. Here is the letter (I have removed all names):

======================

Commitments to Each Other

As members of the ____ top management team we recognize that we are responsible for the Division's success. That means that we are responsible for each other's success and that there is no business of the Division that is not our business. As teammates, with those responsibilities, we commit to each other the following:

• We will acknowledge each other's successes and contributions
• If we ever disagree with another team member's actions or decisions we will discuss our concerns with that team member (and not others)
• If we cannot resolve issues or concerns we will raise them to the Division President for resolution
• We will learn each other's challenges, goals, and objectives
• We will represent each other's interests in our respective organizations
• We will strive, in all things, to make the Corporation successful and to achieve Division objectives, ahead of individual objectives
• We will represent team decisions as that; we will debate them within the team and support them outside the team
• We will seek each other's input

We also acknowledge that our roles as Division leaders are 24-hour-a-day, 7-day-a-week roles. So, these commitments are always to be lived up to, in all settings and with all audiences.

The letter was them signed by all the senior team members.

=================

If you have some leadership team dysfunction, you might need to do something like this. I have found that the problem will not improve until team members hold themselves to a higher standard and they acknowledge what's going on.

This letter is not perfect - I would change a few things today if I were crafting it again - but it gives you the idea. Your letter should address the challenges you have and the opportunities you seek to explore.

If you struggle with management teaming issues, you might also check out a post I did on the topic a few years back called Dysfunction Reverberates. BTW - hint-hint, wink-wink, this post was one of 69 that made it into my new "best of" book Never-Ending New Beginnings. Have you picked up your copy yet? Thanks so much, if you have.

 

 

Elegant, Simple, Profound and Free e-book from @TNVORA

I wanted to share this free resource with you from fellow author and blogger pal Tanmay Vora over at QAspire. It is a free e-book called Graceful Leadership - you can download it here. This e-book contains 101 important ways to be that are simple and tough at the same time. Common and uncommonly practiced. Not rocket science but often our favorite qualities in those who manage us. Here are a few examples from the book:

Respect your time. Manage it well. If you are disciplined about how you use your time, people will always respect yours and their time.

As a leader, “power” and “control” are myths. “Empowerment” and “trust” are the realities.

Learn to remain silent. You don’t have to add your 2 cents in everything you hear.

You see what I mean? Good stuff. I would encourage you to download the complete collection here and share the link with others. We all can use a benevolent nudge every now and then.

Here is one I would add: If you can do only one thing today, enable someone to do his or her best work. As a leader, there is no higher priviledge than to catalyze greatness in others.

The One Lesson for Making Change Happen @ellenfweber

My blogger/author/educator pal Ellen Weber has done this extraordinary post where she has asked 50 of the top rated business bloggers provocative questions. I am honored to be among the list. Check out the whole post. Here is my response to Ellen's question and a bit more on the topic:

Ellen - you asked: "If you could only garner one lesson from life to improve business most, what would that lesson be?" And the answer is also found in your post. Not only in your words, but in the effort you have demonstrated. The one lesson I would garner is that to make something happen, we need to do something - do something -- do something new, do something different, do something better, do something for longer, do something with others, do something that helps build talent and teams and relationships. It's about showing up - really showing up. That is what changes things. The extraordinary effort you have shown with this post, all the provocative questions, and your deep interest that comes through in your words is a great demonstration of the lesson. Bravo to you!

I was listening to Bob Costas' interview of Michael Phelps after he won his last Gold Medal. One of the things that Michael said that showed great perspective is that the results he got are the ones he prepared for. That had he trained for 4 years, he might have done better on the races where he struggled. But he chose to take 2 years off and this surely impacted his outcomes. This is called ownership.

See the connection between the two thoughts? To make something happen, WE need to do something. Now. This moment. And in the next. Most of the time this something has to do with people. Management is a social act, afterall.

Always be at peace with your results. They come from what you have done and the choices you have made. Want different results? Do something different. Woulda, shoulda, coulda thinking has no place in our minds. It will cloud our judgment and affect our choices.

I will be the first to admit that this idea is not always easy to manifest. It is human to feel regret, anguish, defensiveness, and envy when things don't go as we hope. And if we can quickly get beyond these human responses and transition to another very human response - dogged determination - we will thrive and change our worlds. I think about this everyday - talking myself into a more effective action whenever possible.

Best of #Management Craft - PDF or Print Version now Available

Never-Ending New Beginnings: A Manifesto on Personal Impact

The Very Best from the Management Craft Blog 2004-2012

Download the PDF Version here - $10.00

Order the PRINT Version here - $15.00

A few days ago I told you all about my new "best of" collection available with the best 69 posts from the last eight years from this blog. I am pleased to let you know that there is now a PDF version available, too. All the info is above and below. I have heard from several folks who have started reading the collection, here are a few of their comments:

From Trish: "I am sitting here in tears and soft smiles - secret knowing head shakes in sync w your thoughts as I read your book. I am so moved. And tickled many shades of pink and various colours. :)"

From Steve: "I’ve been dipping into it over the last 2 days and have enjoyed every piece."

From Elaine: "I just read of few of the chapters. They are so inspiring; they are so YOU!"

From Jerre: "I can’t wait to read this, ... You continue to amaze, inspire and tackle the world. Sending the best of everything through ones and zeros."

I would love to hear your feedback as well! Thanks for your support and I hope you pick up a copy, analog or digital. If you have enjoyed the blog, I ask that you support this project. PLUS, I think you will love the collection. It will make you smile and give you the uumph you need to conquer your world. Really!

Download the PDF Version here - $10.00

Order the PRINT Version here - $15.00

Never-Ending New Beginnings - The Very Best From #Management Craft

Management Craft just turned eight years old this month. This means that I have been blogging for egith years - that's just crazy. Never in a million years would I have predicted that I would have kept at it this long. There is one reason why I am still doing it. It's you, my dear readers. I love the way you chime in to tell me how my writing impacts you - even when it angers you. As someone who likes to think and play with ideas, you ensure I stay current and on my toes.

In the last eight years, I have written about 1800 posts. Of those, several dozen have resonated in a big way. Many of you are newer readers and this means that you have only seen more recent posts. But some of those older posts are still relevant. I have been thinking about a way to give older posts new life and new usefullness.

I have been thinking for a few years about doing a "best of" book with only the cream of the crop pieces from this blog. I wrote a bit about the process several days ago. I am pleased to announce that the best of book is done and available.

I have self-published this book using Lulu.com. This has enabled me to keep it easy and to keep the price down. It contains 69 of the very best posts. The book is called:

Never-Ending New Beginnings: A Manifesto on Personal Impact. The Very Best from the Management Craft Blog 2004-2012. It costs $15.00 and is available here.

I hope you don't mind if I am so bold to say that I love the title and I love this collection. It is my most personal book yet (because this blog is personal) and I think my best book of all time in terms of its potential to be a game-changer - to affect people's lives.

I hope you will pick up a copy and I would encourage you to use this as a book for your managers and leaders. It contains all the best stuff about how we can do our best work leading others. I think you will really, really, like this collection.

Other reasons to do this book:  I wanted to do something to celebrate eight years of blogging. Also, I wanted to explore the essence of what I have been writing. And third, it seemed like a fun thing to do.

I am calling this a manifesto on personal impact because when I read the collection of posts all the way through, that is how it struck me. As a manifesto that has evolved over eight years.

This would be a great gift for someone who you would like to help get reconnected with his or her work. There is a lot of possibility and personal reinvention addressed in this book. If you would like to use the book for a book club, I will send a personal email to your members and call into your book club to kick it off.

Let me know what you think and thanks for your support.