It's Tuesday at 2:00pm! (PST Time: I live and work from Southern California)
Currently, I'm exploring different leadership quotes on this blog post, and pulling out some application for all of us. This is part of my personal journey to keep growing, learning and being stretched! Join me each Tuesday at 2:00pm (PST). It will take you just a few minutes to read through the 2 sections of this post, but don't miss the final section where I share some of the things I'm reading, listening to and enjoying this week.
Russ
LEADERSHIP QUOTE:
"If you could get all the people in an organization rowing in the same direction, you could dominate any industry, in any market, against any competition, at any time." Patrick Lencioni
What does this stir up? Either write me HERE or comment at the end of the blog post HERE.
A LITTLE BIT DEEPER:
We spent 4 weeks looking at some Drucker quotes, and I want to spend the next 4 weeks looking at one of my favorite authors and organizational consultants, Patrick Lencioni. His thoughts will challenge you and they can be applied to any organizational setting.
The Lencioni quote above might sound great, but in reality it's much more complex than just rowing in the same direction.
I think he's talking about vision, goals and purpose. If people can be aligned around those things, then they could "dominate".
The reality is that "rowing together" isn't a simple thing. People push and pull, and sometimes you want people on your time heading in a different direction, however if you take away the simplistic metaphor, I love the image.
Have you ever been on a team that is moving TOGETHER in the same direction: vision, goals & purpose? What was that like?
DEEPER STILL:
Years ago when I was leading a team in Ecuador, we had a friend come down to visit and he did the "match test". He actually lit a match and asked me to share the vision of our organization, before burning my fingers. I didn't have time to practice, I just had to spew it out, and I failed. I rambled, I wasn't clear, and I didn't have a defined statement ready.
He went on to ask what others on our team would recite when I handed them a "burning match" and I have to admit, most of them failed too.
Of course their failure was my failure. I was the leader and I hadn't articulated clearly what it was we were trying to do and where we were going.
The quote above has challenged me over the years because I've seen many organizations that are not rowing in the same direction as a team.
Mis-communication, lack of trust, unclear goals and direction and mass confusion is really what keeps this from happening, and Lencioni is challenging us as leaders to work on this ONE THING, and the team will perform better.
He's right.
Think of the organization you are a part of today. Do you have clarity as to where you're going? Does the leadership, board, stakeholders and investors all understand clearly what's next? NOW is a good time to pursue that clarity and to begin moving forward... together.
Things I'm Reading, Listening To and Watching This Week:
We're cheering Ecuador on in the World Cup. Join us!
To learn more about Patrick Lencioni, check out The Table Group.
If I'm going to recommend ONE Lencioni Book to start with, it would have to be The Five Dysfunctions of a Team. This booked challenged me and changed me as a leader!
I was playing Gina songs from the Creedence Clearwater Revival Catalog. We recognized most of their songs, but only knew a few lines. Great music!
OK, we ordered this game last month, but we played it on Thanksgiving. Great hit! Pencil Nose!