Patrick Lencioni - 5 Dysfunctions of a Team

The speaker now is Patrick Lencioni author of 5 Dysfunctions of a Team and many other books. I am not a big fan of the book title - seems to me, for every Dysfunction, there is a Positive Function. Why dwell on negative.

Some gems:

"People need to be reminded more often than they need to be instructed."

We spend most of our time making our companies Smart - Strategy, Marketing, Finance, Technology but we need to spend more time on being Healthy - Minimal Politics, High Morale, High Productivity, Low Turnover, Minimal Confusion. The problem is the former are easier to measure. Being Healthy by these measures are the best sustainable advantage.

Leaders should over communicate. People need to be told 7 times before they actually believe it. Use different mediums. Often the leader worries that they are too redundant but they should not worry about that.

"People will walk through a fire for a leader who is truly vulnerable"

"I'd rather know someones Myers-Briggs type than their age or gender"

Institutionalize culture without bureaucratizing it.

Sometimes a change of just one person can dramatically change the team dynamic.

"Not holding people accountable for their behaviors is an act of selfishness"

"Behaviors precede results." Correct behaviors now, or face poor results later

The 5 Dysfunctions:

1 - Absense of Trust. So obviously, work to gain trust. Honesty, integrity and consistency are the key. Be willing to listen to other views (and be willing to change your own view if that is the right thing to do)

2 - Fear of Conflict. Passionate debate around an issue is a good thing. Conflict is a good thing. This ties to the first Dysfunction - you need trust to thrive with healthy conflict.

3 - Lack of Commitment. Healthy discussion (including conflict) builds buy in. Get everyone to weigh in. Consensus is a bad thing.

4 - Avoidance of Accountability. The team needs to hold themselves accountable. The leader need to hold people accountable ("the technical term for this is "don't be a wuss"")

5 - Inattention to Results. Leaders have to focus on the collective good. Stand up for what is right.

Lencioni is an entertaining speaker.

Bill George - Live from World Business Forum

Blogging live from New York Radio City Music Hall. WBF. There are about 5000 people attending. There are about 40 bloggers and twitterers in the press area with me. Powerful group.

First Speaker is Bill George. I met him last night and blogged about his book "7 Lessons for Leading in Crisis". He sits on the Goldman Sachs board so was on the front row in seeing how the financial crisis unfolded.

His speech is based on his book. He reiterates the 7 Lessons.

Gems from his speech:

"Get down on the playing field. " Get involved.

Crisis is when true leaders emerge.

The aftermath of the financial crisis may be worse than the storm. His message is less optimistic than the way I feel. I, personally, feel the crisis is passing and as with most challenges we will emerge stronger. Bill George does have some optimism that entrepreneurship can solve the challenges we now face.

He is highly worried about the lack of jobs. He thinks we need longer term thinking to solve this. We both agree that we need innovation to solve this. "saving jobs is less important than creating new jobs".

"Think Long Term". Much of the root cause (especially on Wall Street) is called by thinking too short term.

Learn from Crisis.

Be authentic and lead with integrity.

Invest during downturns.

Don't be a victim - change. We may not be able to control what happens to us but we can control our response.

"There is no substitute for good execution plans."

His final words were "we can all make a difference". (reminds me of and article I wrote about Being Galvanized - not Paralysed)

He is a good speaker. His energy and passion is inspiring. I like his belief in free enterprise, innovation and entrepreneurship.

WBF

I am seated already in the Bloggers Hub area at WBF. The excitement is palpable. Most importantly, wireless is working. Looking forward to great and inspiring day.

WBF and 7 Lessons for Leading In Crisis

There will be lots of blog posts today. I am a featured blogger at World Business Forum (WBF). What this means is I have been given press credentials and a free pass. WBF is a star studded lineup of speakers including such people as Bill Clinton, Patrick Lencioni, George Lucas, T. Boone Pickens etc.

The venue is Radio City Music hall. The format is a huge auditorium with thousands of attendees (I have been to previous ones). Each speaker gets about an hour to speak and answer questions.

This will be 2 days of live coverage of the event.

For me, the event started last night with a reception put on by Bill George, author of "7 Lessons for Leading in Crisis". Bill is a very accomplished leader. He was CEO at Medtronics. He is now a Harvard Business School professor. He is also an accomplished author with his previous books - Authentic Leadership and Finding Your True North.

In person he seems bright, witty, and personable.

He did give me an autographed copy of his new book. As the title implies, it is 7 short lessons on leading in crisis. The lessons:

1 - Face Reality -starting with yourself. The gist of the message is "take full responsibility". Wishing it was somehow different will not make it so.

2 - Don't be Atlas - get the world off your shoulders. Despite facing reality, you have resources that can help in any crisis. Use them. Worry is not productive but creative thinking can be. Be willing to be vulnerable.

3 - Dig deep for the root cause. It can be easy to mistake symptoms for cause. You cannot devise a solution if you do not have the right problem.

4 - Get ready for the long haul. It is tempting to think of crisis as something the weather until things get better. I know in this economy, I see some companies calling this strategy. And of course he says, cash is king.

5 - Never waste a good crisis. The implication is there is always good in bad situations. In many cases it is the learning.

6 - You're in the spotlight - follow true north. In this section he plays on his earlier books. Be authenitic, be genuine. Be yourself - and choose to be good.

7 - Go on offense - Focus on winning now. Half the crisis is defense and getting through it. Now is the time to learn and grow through the crisis.

And of course, I have only just scratched the surface in this review.

From Zach Clayton's Amazon review:

Decades ago, my grandmother explained to me that "character" is who we are and what we do "when no one's looking." There are also times, such as the situation George describes, when we aren't "looking" either and lose our way. Crises have a way of attracting, often commanding our attention but, when doing so, they can also bring out the best or worst in us. In this context, I am reminded of a U.S. Open golf championship years ago (perhaps at Shinnecock or Oakmont) when many of the players angrily complained about the severe conditions (the fairways were too narrow, the greens too fast, the pin placements "impossible," etc.). In response, the U.S.G.A. official who supervised the course conditions replied, "We're not trying the embarrass the world's best golfers, we're trying to identify them." I think this is one of George's key points in this book. Those in leadership positions who possess and rely upon their True North are more likely to "stay on track" and make the right decisions when under severe stress. The importance of those decisions is compounded by the fact that others trust and depend upon these leaders to do what is difficult but necessary (e.g. Abraham Lincoln and Winston Churchill) rather than what is easy or at least expedient.

The book is targeted at a business audience and uses business examples. I think much of it would apply to crisis in other areas.

It is a good book. Although it is short (139 pages), there is a lot of value in the 7 Lessons. It is a meaty book for its size.

Success Habits - The Book

We are the product of what we repeatedly do - Aristotle.

I am writing a book about Success Habits. The format of the book would be to have the success habit with details on exactly what it is and variations on it. I would follow this by a short profile of someone who successfully uses the habit.

It has in intro chapter on why habits work and one on how to create habits.

I am asking for your input - either by commenting or emailing me at jimestill at gmail with some of your success habits and how they have helped you. If you are commenting and want credit, include your name and email address please.

And to get your creative juices flowing, some of my success habits include:

1 - Do the worst thing first thing. This technique is great for solving procrastination.

2 - I talk to myself or I have mantras. Things I repeat often. Some of mine are:

Successful people do tough things (When I am baulking at doing something)

What is the best use of my time right now (from Alan Lakein to keep me on the right task)

What the heck - go for it anyways (used whenever I have cold feet)

What would I like to have accomplished by the time I go to bed

Back to work (used to help me regain focus)

3 - I rise early

4 - I do not go to bed without learning one new thing

5 - I read 2-3 books per week minimum.

6 - I keep a great contact list and I try to reach out to as many as I can (even passively like this blog)

7 - I do not watch TV

Etc.

So get me your success habits and comments please.

Total Leadership

I went to a YPO seminar yesterday morning by Stewart Friedman. He is the Wharton professor who wrote Total Leadership - Be a Better Leader, Have a Richer Life.

The book proposes looking for 4 way wins. Things you can do in your life that can improve your satisfaction (how much you enjoy it) and performance (how successful other people perceive you to be) in the areas of Work, Home/relationship, Community and Self.

The thesis is that some things can improve all areas so those are what should be focused on. It is about handling multiple priorities in different areas of life.

An Amazon review by M. Henderson describes it well.

What makes this book especially effective are the exercises the author puts the reader through. The reader is asked to define the issue, starting with the multiple responsibilities and challenges s/he faces, then it moves on to defining your domains, where is it that you spend your time? Most of the readers (including myself) would find four areas: self, family, work and community. Then, with domains defined, you can identify stakeholders in each domain and begin the process of finding ways "to live your life in accord with what really matters to you." The reader is asked to discuss his/her vision for a future life (post-change) with trusted individuals s/he has previously identified. A particularly effective step is then speaking with others about living your life differently, such as: your boss, significant other and friends, and getting their opinion and feedback on your plan, and as difficult and challenging as this may be it ends up providing the most powerful incentive to change through accountability and stakeholder buy-in. In many cases, I found that as much as I was building bridges between domains in my life, I was also creating boundaries (for example, no longer do I check my blackberry or the Internet between the hours of 6pm - 9pm.) But some of the biggest changes are personal ones that are for me and my family, other readers will likely find similar decisions they make without necessarily sharing them.

The one area that many people can gain 4 way wins would be through being healthy - exercising and eating right. It improves all areas. (over 4 years ago, I talked about workout inspiration)

The only part of the theory I did not like was the assumption that work is bad and we all want to work less. I see this a a huge groundswell in society. I tend to look at work as inspirational so do not share the current world view.

I do not really believe in balance. Or perhaps I believe only in enough balance to support primary goals. When I am truly inspired, it is a 4 way win for me but during those times I tend to then have very high focus on jut one area.

Brothers' Weekend and the Pedometer Health Plan

I am just back from a Brothers' Weekend in Lionshead where my brother Glen lives. Lyle came up from North Carolina. We hiked the Bruce Trail, went sailing, played cards and we laughed. Brothers' weekend is an Estill brother tradition that was started by my older brother Mark. The 4 of us went on 25+ weekends together all around North America from Algonquin canoe tripping, sailing off the Carolina coast, cabin in the Poconos, cottages, Vegas etc.

This is the second Brothers' weekend we have been on since Mark died in December. The last one, was not the fun of this one. As a matter of fact, I was not really looking forward to this weekend but it was a blast. Perhaps we are starting to heal.

I was wearing a pedometer and inspired Lyle to go get one. (I love it when I have that impact on people) The idea is simple. Walk 10,000 steps per day. Wearing the pedometer and tracking steps reminds us to do it. There are even books on the topic (although I have not read them) like "Pedometer Walking:Stepping Your Way to Health, Weight Loss and Fitness"

I have used different pedometers and they all calibrate a bit differently so all counts are not equivalent (EG if you compare to me, yours might be + or - 10%).

Mine does not add steps for cycling so total exercise can be a bit off (EG if I cycle for an hour, I get no steps credit). Same with weight lifting.

Over the past 16 days, I have averaged 11,925 steps per day. Theoretically, I am training for a marathon so should be higher than average. The previous 16 days I averaged 13,213 and the 10 days before that I was 14,245.

I find I get about 3500 or 4000/day just for being me (my all time low is 2,000/day and twice I have been over 30,000 steps). So to get over 10,000, I need to pace for 65 minutes or walk for 50 minutes (for me, walking is faster) or run for 35 minutes. Usually, I do a combination of all to hit my number.