When the World Changed

Sometimes the key indicators of changes are easy to see and sometimes they aren’t. This wasn’t always so. Before our connected world, before we all carried mobile telephony constantly, and when our Facebook status didn’t derive our mood, we lived in a world where change seemed to happen as a series small or very large earthquakes. It would be still for some extended period, then something major would happen and it would alter our world. These days the ground shakes almost constantly beneath us, and we’ve almost ceased to notice the movement and motion it creates.

My first memory of an earth-changing moment happened when I was very young, and I watched Neil Armstrong walk on the moon’s surface. Indeed it was one small step for man, and a giant leap for mankind. With that simple act, we moved without doubt beyond our own world, and opened a new frontier. It was a seminal moment for our race – something the new iWhatever doesn’t necessarily rate highly against, but we treat the same way it seems.

We saw a small but significant passing this week in my country indicative that another change was now to be properly relegated to the history books – our last World War One veteran passed away at the ripe old age of 110. There is no one left that can offer their perspectives and tales of what happened, it’s stories from dead people now.

We can celebrate their long life and the situations they’d have seen, but I’m not sure we can ever again appreciate what a universe-rocking event that person perceived and saw themselves participating in. My own grandfather was deployed during this ‘great war’ as it was then known, and it represented conflict on a scale never before seen. Virtually the entire planet was trying to annihilate one another. It had the potential of being an extinction level event was the common view at the time. It brought to everyday life horrors hitherto unseen – and now commonly available at the Cineplex sadly. It struck me on reading this news that big change happened less frequently, and was more dramatic then. It also made me think of those that served, and the role they’d have played in this change, and made me wonder what they would have thought of it – both then and in hindsight. Like many involved in any conflict, my own grandfather didn’t speak of what he saw, did or thought, so I’ll never know. I can say with some certainty that he would be uncomfortable with the excitement level about change that we enable today.

He saw the real thing, so the fuss made over a new gadget, celebrity comment or minor business development would be incomprehensible to him. He wouldn't fathom how these ‘rustlings’ represented change worth acknowledging – or perhaps he’d see it for what it is – the small noises that fill the calm between the storms.

From Extraordinary to Mundane

I’m flying across the Atlantic as I write this and it struck me that I don’t know how many times I’ve done this over the years. Many. This is the 4^th time so far this year. The undertaking itself is impressive still, but also routine in a fashion. The experience has become normal for me, it’s just what happens sometimes. For many it’s extraordinary, and I run into people on an almost a daily basis that have never done it.

It’s a shame when we don’t notice the adjustment, that movement from something ceasing to be spectacular and special and don’t acknowledge it. There remain many things I’d like to do that I’d consider to be extraordinary still, but experience and age has even dulled the shine off of some of these.

Someone like Graham Greene who had a fantastic eye for the human condition would appreciate the melancholy created from having achieved much of what you want. He’d have served it with warmer irony than I’m able to muster as well. Were this story his, this text would be found floating in the swells from where the wreckage washed ashore.

Culture

Culture is a funny thing. When it's good it's great, and when it's not - we forget how important it is. Culture defines how we contribute to the group or team or organization that we're part of in many ways. Strong positive cultures tend to see 'more' from their people, while less positive or even weak culture have their staff view where they spend time as just their job.

Culture is created through example by the leadership, or those the leaders nominate, and it's precariously balanced. One bad egg can wreck a culture - as it often is manifest as an unstated set of rules that we follow because we want to. When one person acts counter-culturally, it spreads a toxic feeling - the rest of those involved recognize the anti-culture contagion, but are often powerless to stop it as culture rules aren't written down more often than not and hence can't be enforced.

Culture is very similar in a properties sense to an organization's or team's momentum. You know when you have it and others do too, but it's hard to recreate on demand.

Those responsible for culture, (and it's by-products of passion, energy and goal-focused behaviors) have a responsibility to maintain it positively and strongly. That they abdicate this responsibility in some cases is unacceptable. It's akin to throwing away an ROI focus, or accepting huge cost overruns. Sadly however as it's an intangible quality that not all recognize, the requirement to keep it strong, keep it burning well and preclude others from spoiling it is often overlooked. That's just a sign of simple lack of vision unfortunately.

So I ask you - what have you done today - yes, today - to promote a vibrant, healthy culture that helps empower your group, team or staff to go above and beyond. If the answer is nothing - then you have some work to do.

Time Flies

Just yesterday, I held her in my arms as she squirmed, cooed and gurgled.

Last week it seems I cuddled her, holding her hurt knee and telling her it would all be all-right.

I watched with pride as she momentously trundled across the room, beaming with a tremendous sense of accomplishment as only a 2 year old knows.

I watched doctors give her a needle as big as her whole arm as she screamed confused at the smells, noises and coldness of the hospital.

I laughed with her as she'd nudge my leg, sitting beside me on the couch, all the while not looking, and acting innocent.

I've witnessed her intellect deepen and broaden, with the same burning ball of curiosity at the centre.

I've seen her physically grow into an unrecognizable pretty woman, ready for all the world has to offer.

And now, she's done her first year away, succeeding magically at school, more balanced, poised, funny and interactive than almost anyone I know. How did this happen ? How did I look away for an instant to find she's grown up.

I'm proud of my little girl as any parent would be, and saddened that this part of our lives together is gone, to be remembered in photos only. I'm seeing the speed of time today, it's relentless movement, and wondering at where it's gone. There's a lesson here I'm sure, but right now I'd rather just quietly remember my little girl.

So you had a bad day

Some days are worse than others. Like today for example.

What to do about it ?

Learn from it, admit accountability and understand what's involved so that you don't repeat it. You feel better already, don't you..?

When Things are Opaque

When you can't see the path, what do you do..? When the details drown out the big picture, what do you do..? When the smoke from all the fires means you can't execute the strategy, what's your approach..?

Too many of our days are like this, when we worry about being so busy at our jobs, that we can't really do our jobs.

The trick is to validate I've found. I've mentioned it before, but Team New Zealand's focus has stayed with me, and this singular drive and focus is what I use to get me through those times when the work stands in the way of the accomplishment.

The hard part is figuring out what the focus needs to be - after that - it should be straightforward (but not easy) to hold any action you're taking up against this test to validate its' legitimacy.

An Acheivable World

Are you the kind of person that uses a process as you go about the achievement of a goal or objective ? I am.

I didn't always think that I was but I've discovered in recent years that it actually truly helps me I've found that I am someone that benefits tremendously from understanding the next steps to take and the component parts of the overall task I had wanted to do this, but - I wasn't always this way.

For a long time I thought it'd necessarily stifle creative thought or that it didn't allow me to explore or try new approaches. But whether it's exercise or helping a company do things in a more intelligent manner, I discovered that following a defined methodology or a defined process makes a big difference. I can clearly celebrate the achievement of certain goals and at the same time I can understand the bigger picture or the context of where I am in the scope of the overall task .

Perhaps it requires a logical way of thinking about things or perhaps it works for someone who just really need to have structure. Regardless, having a process or methodology helps place an understanding of what is needed into an understanding of what ever it is that we are doing.

Are you a process person ? Are you someone who benefits from doing things according to a checklist or someone who needs the surety of understanding what's been done and what hasn't..?

Maybe you don't need it - there's lots of different ways you can approach a task or deliverable and whatever way that works for you - I wish you well.

Here is a suggestion though - if you have never tried it, my suggestion is that it's worth that effort as you may discover that there's an achievable world out there that allows you to imagine both the goal and the pathway to the accomplishment of things that you do, that seems quite impossible right now. Whether it's losing those pesky 15 pounds or hitting your sales target or redecorating a bathroom, careful thought to define the steps (the process) saves tremendous stress and possible rework. It also means that if you're not successful, you know where things fell off the rails and can attend to that, rather than give up on the goal all-together.