Today isn’t the only day that people hide behind masks. On many days, people shield their authenticity, light, or fears when they fail to express their true emotions. Others hide their insecurities and feel like imposters even though they have many gifts to share.
It’s fun to wear costumes and disguises today but save those filters just for this holiday. On all the other days, let your true self shine through.
I recently re-listened to John Maxwell’s The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership. The classic was originally written in 1997 but it still resonates today.
One “law” that stuck with me was #8, the Law of Intuition. Maxwell states that “leaders are readers” and use their intuition to read the room, read trends, read people, etc. He also believes that leaders read themselves and their current state of mind (i.e. emotional intelligence), as well as having an acute sense of the resources available to them. Maxwell calls it the ability to “smell” the intangibles such as morale and culture — the ability to get a pulse on the situation without reading reports or digesting facts.
As with all 21 of his laws, Maxwell believes that while some may have more innate abilities in an area, all skills can be developed. Think of what you have done to strengthen your ability to “read.” Practice evaluating a situation before you jump in. Make time for a bit of introspection to see where your strengths lie and where you need to devote effort. Follow trends and test whether your intuition is reliable. Leaders are readers of far more than books.
A shopping area in Milwaukee elected not to enforce parking meters in the retail district. Instead of removing the meters, they opted to paint them. It saved the expense of removal and concrete repair, added art to the area, and reminded shoppers that parking was free. It’s a great solution for everyone!
It’s nice to provide complementary services but don’t forget to remind customers that the perk is included in the cost. Take a lesson from the parking meters and be subtle yet tangible with a nod to your freebies.
When most people think about catering for showers or wedding events, boutique caterers come to mind. Panera is trying to change that by positioning itself as an option for such occasions with its “Eat. Drink. Be Married” promotional campaign. Panera is promoting its food for bridal party brunches, welcome weekend breakfasts, and even utilizing Panera gift cards as wedding presents.
As a known, reliable, well-liked food provider, it may work as an option that people had not considered before their advertising. Panera has always done boxed food delivery and expanding that service to a different audience may work for them.
Have a brainstorming session and generate a list of all the people who could benefit from your product or service. Go crazy with far-fetched options — then see if one of the niches may be worth an experiment to cater to a new market with what you currently offer.
Thanks, Meg!
There are as many ways to keep track of tasks as there are people doing the tracking. Some make many lists; others have no lists (gasp!!), while still others maintain a mixture of short and long-term items they must do.
I manage my tasks through a sorting process of longer-term/today and quicker-to-do vs. major projects that I need to address. I also like the prioritization process that Stacey Abrams uses: Gotta do, Need to do, Oughta Do, and Might Get Around to It! The informal language makes it easy for her (and you?) to see where each task belongs and to stay focused on the Gotta Do’s first.
You’ve probably been keeping lists without really thinking about how — or if — they are helping you achieve your goals. Take a moment to consider whether a new format would work better for you and experiment with different list-making strategies. It’s not something that you’ve Gotta Do, but it might help you be more productive in the long run if you Get Around to It.
Time management seems to be a popular topic for my sessions recently, and there are as many tips as there are individuals. Everyone needs to develop their own system that fits their preferences, needs, and temperament.
The one tip that worked for me is to take control of your calendar. If you have wide open blocks of time, it’s an invitation for others to infringe on that time, even if your intention was to do work during that unscheduled period. If you put “work on project” on your calendar, others may see that as a flexible commitment and invite you to a meeting anyway.
To counteract this, I used to schedule meetings with “Mable.” There was no Mable, but others didn’t know that. They would see my calendar as full during the periods when I needed to do deep work. It also held me accountable — I could move my meeting with Mable, but it was an intentional action rather than having the time sucked up by something else.
You can give your “Mable” another name but schedule meetings with that person and honor them as you would with anyone else. Your time with her could be your most productive meeting of the week!
It’s a lot easier to shoot a basket or score a touchdown when there’s no one defending you. It’s also more likely that you’ll be successful without any competition, or that people will agree with your premise until they hear an opposing view.
Take care not to become insulated and only discuss your product or idea with those who agree with you. It happens in meetings when everyone gathered hears only the internal story without any user feedback. It happens on campaigns when the bus is filled with supporters who tune out the naysayers. It happens with entrepreneurs who become so enamored with their ideas that they can’t imagine everyone else sharing their excitement.
The test is not how well your product/position/design stands up on its own, but rather whether the merits can outweigh the inevitable pushback.
President Obama said: “The single most powerful word in our democracy is the word ‘We.’ ‘We The People.’ ‘We Shall Overcome.’ ‘Yes We Can.’ That word is owned by no one. It belongs to everyone.”
I think about “we” on this United Nations Day. The whole premise of that organization revolves around “we” — that we are a global society that needs to address the challenges and opportunities that impact all of us. “We” certainly don’t agree on everything, but for 78 years, the United Nations has helped facilitate conversations and forge partnerships that no one country could do alone.
Think about what you are doing to foster the “we” in your organization or community. It’s easier to point fingers at “they” instead of doing the hard work to cultivate a common bond, but being united — maybe after some heated debate — is the best way forward.
Many times, we think of things in terms of all or nothing, black or white, yes or no. It polarizes people and makes it harder to get things done. Organizations could be more productive if they thought of things in smaller chunks — opting to make a policy or decision that affected some of the situations instead of all.
An example involved allowing dogs in city parks. It was “no, no, no” for multiple rounds until the proposal was amended to allow Fido in some of the places. Now, people can walk their dogs in numerous locations and the major parks are still off-limits, preserving a dog-free zone for those who prefer.
Another example is in Saugatuck, Michigan which outlined a downtown zone of several city blocks where people could walk freely with alcohol. Signs indicated where the “social district” ended, alerting the revelers that the rules were different on the other side of the street. It’s likely that an ordinance wouldn’t have passed allowing open alcohol everywhere, but by setting boundaries it worked for the businesses, tourists, and residents.
The next time you have a controversial proposal (and aren’t they all these days!), think about how you can create segments as a compromise position. Having some changes isn’t everything, but it’s far better than none.
You would guess that a chef who trained at Le Cordon Bleu and had experience with one of the most prestigious catering companies in Washington DC would be working at a fancy restaurant, but instead, he’s the Executive Chef for the cafeteria at the Smithsonian’s American Museum. Although it’s a traditional cafeteria set-up with different stations of food, they have shown that institutional food doesn’t have to be ordinary. By hiring an executive chef, the museum elevated its offerings in variety and taste and became a popular destination for diners on the National Mall.
Think of what position you have that would enhance your whole organization if you invested in a star for that role. Someone to do your marketing and branding instead of tacking those responsibilities onto someone’s job? A social media influencer? An interior designer who could transform your spaces? A financial analyst that could rethink your budgeting and investment strategies? A landscaper who could distinguish your outside presence?
You likely can’t afford a top-notch person for every position but think hard about which functions deserve to be led by the best. Hiring a rockstar in a non-traditional role could be a game-changer for the entire organization.
