"With out a clear vision of what wrong looks like, you and your workforce have to deal with the pain of doing something hard and often painful without knowing why"
Change to Strange- Pg 173
Month: March 2008
Because strategic direction defines the nature of the desired relationship between a business and its customers, objectives are only strategic when they lead to outcomes that are recognised by customers. Strategy objectives, therefore, are always externally focused. Internal objectives – creating better employee involvement, or becoming one of the best work places in America – do not qualify as strategic objectives unless they create changes that are recognised by customers. Businesses should not neglect internal improvements, but, in order to be strategic, internal improvements should be directed at improving performance in ways that are noticeable to customers.
Real Time Strategy pg 67
In essentials, unity; in action, freedom; and in all things, trust. – Aristotle
Compassionate Leadership – pg 121
SEXY.
For some reason I really like the provocative nature of this word. Its a funny word because said in the right situation with the right amount of, well, passion; you can actually make grown men flinch.
Noticeably flinch!
The America Heritage Dictionary says that it is slang for HIGHLY appealing or interesting.
For me, sexy is a great way to describe the need to build a brand that is fun, fascinating, fanatical, and edgy.
It encapsulates, and provokes, a dynamic that I would like every organization and industry I work with to have. That is, that they become HIGHLY appealing.
That they become interesting.
That they become sexy.
The problem with sexy is that it is hard to catch if you don’t have it.
You have to c h a s e i t . . .
And sometimes when you get it, it was not what you wanted. Just ask Don Rabbit.
[NB I think this is a post about being appealing, just in case you wondered]
A sad week this week. Went to the funeral of my uncle Terry. He was my Mum’s only living immediate family member and an awesome uncle. Craig and I spoke at the funeral.
As I reflected on his life I know that his life challenges me to be a great uncle. One that takes a genuine and unique interest in my nephews and nieces.
Some posts I wrote in the last week:
Made or Born @ lead2live.com
Expectations @lead2live.com
Australia T&L @viewpoint.net.nz
My mood generally is good, but overloaded. Need to work out what I can stop doing… Problem is I have a huge week ahead.
Now that I have my pilots licence for planes, I have started thinking about how inconvenient they are. A helicopter would be so much better. I could drop into the vacant land next to agóge HQ. It would be great.
Well on Friday a Robinson R44 dropped into our neighbours CKL. It encapsulated all of my dreams. The sign by the tail rotor, with agoge in the background, is a warning in more ways than one…
The Helicopter HLG is owned by Meridian Holdings Limited in Auckland.
Recently I flew on Pacific Blue for the first time. As it was my first flight I had expectations. Big Ones. Cool crew, more seat room, modern planes. It was to be an adventure.
On my first flight the crew were dull, boring and lifeless. Their attempts at humour were staged and had as much heart as frozen dead fish. My second flight was far more entertaining, the crew obviously enjoyed each other and started their own onboard dating service over the PA. On my final flight the crew were chatty and entertaining.
Surprisingly however, Pacific Blue did not live up to my expectations.
The first crew let them down. I hadn’t expected the seats to be so hard (yip really). I hadn’t thought about the fact I would need to buy a drink of water, and that the minimum visa transaction was $10. I don’t carry cash.
They did not meet my expectations. Not through any fault of their own but because I had the wrong expectations.
Jim flew with them a week later and loved them, metaphorically of course. His expectations were different.
So…
In business, in life, or in love, expectations are the root of most problems.
Over and over and over again I have expectations for people that I forget to tell them about. I think it is one of my greatest leadership struggles as it happened to me twice on Friday. They in turn have expectations of me that they don’t tell me about. I fail to meet their expectations and they mine.
All because we didn’t communicate well.
We become disappointed with each other,
Annoyed,
Even ANGRY!
Expectations, if I don’t communicate them, ARE MY PROBLEM.