It's Tuesday at 2:00pm! (PST Time: I live and work from Southern California)
Greetings to you!
Each week I send out a short leadership blog that's called "Tuesday at 2:00pm". The purpose of this is simply to provide a brief thought on leadership that you can read and think about in just a few minutes. I send it out every week at 2:00pm (PST) and encourage you to make an appointment with yourself to pause and think about the thing I'm writing about.
Russ...
LEADERSHIP QUOTE:
"I'd rather regret the risks that didn't work out than the chances I didn't take at all." Simone Biles, Olympic Gold, Silver & Bronze Medalist
What does this stir up? Either write me HERE or comment at the end of the blog post HERE.
A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:
This is the last quote I'll share from one of our Olympic Athletes. Simone Biles needs no introduction. She is considered one of the greatest gymnasts and Olympians of all time, and this year in Paris she shined.
The quote from her above is a little obvious.
As a gymnast, she chose to take risks every time she approached a competition, and there were times that the risk paid off, and there were times I'm sure that taking those risks cost her a victory.
Imagine the training, the discipline, the failure, the pain, the pressure.
Biles has also become an advocate for mental health, and she made some really tough decisions to pay attention to her state of anxiety and choose health over competition. This was also a risk that she took.
I think there are 2 basic approaches to risk: either we EMBRACE IT or we AVOID IT. With both of these approaches, we need to manage the risk.
Biles approach is to EMBRACE IT, and the result of that for her has been medals, recognition and great success. As she shares in her quote, she wants to live with no regrets when it comes to risk.
How do you manage risk in your life or leadership?
DEEPER STILL:
When evaluating risk, there are 2 kinds of risk:
INTERNAL RISK: These are risks that you can manage and control to some extent. You define them and are able to address them. Examples of this might be: Your personal health or eating habits, your investment strategies or your travel decisions.
EXTERNAL RISK: This is risk that you don't control, but that you must respond to. This is risk that is outside of your influence. Examples of this might be: Natural disasters, global economy, political instability or a global health crisis.
Both must be managed, but with one you can be proactive in that approach and the other you are reactive.
A Forbes.com article entitled "20 Tips to Help Leaders Effectively Manage Risk and Uncertainty" has some great things to consider. I'll share a few:
Have Contingency Plans: Plan for disruption
Manage Cash Effectively: Ensuring cash reserves to fall back on
Pivot in the Face of Disruption: Pivoting is important
You can read the full article for the rest.
Here's the caution: Don't be surprised when things come at you. Be as ready as you can, because there are always risks, and our job as leaders is to respond to those risks... risk we can control and the risk we can't.
Think about a risk you took that didn't work out... What have you learned from that?
Things I'm Reading, Listening To and Watching This Week:
Forbes.com "20 Tips To Help Leaders Effectively Manage Risk And Uncertainty"
OK, this is for Gina. One of my ALL-TIME favorite books is Lencioni's The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. I've given it away, taught it, referenced it and talked about it for over 20 years. Recently a copy of this book was serving as a door-stop in our home, and Gina picked it up and began reading it this weekend. She said to me, "Why didn't you tell me this book was so good!" She devoured the book and then asked about other Lencioni Books. Glad you're on board... finally!
This past weekend we escaped for a 24-hour anniversary celebration and we attended a great jazz concert at the Hyatt Regency Newport Beach with their Summer Concert Series. Great music by Peter White, Rick Braun & Richard Elliot. We'll look forward to attending one of these concerts again!
Harbor Ministries SPACE Podcast this past week: Stay In It: Psalm 8:1-9
Andy Stanley shared a great podcast on organization tension where he challenges leaders on the difference between "problems that need to be solved and tensions that need to be managed". Really good. Check it out HERE.