Take attendance? Hell yes! Taking attendance is not an old-fashion elementary school activity. It is part of the good order and discipline people desire in the workplace. I expand on discipline - workplace (not military) discipline in my book, "It's Personal, Not Personnel." Of course, if it is done in the 'teacher calling out each name' style then a leader risks belittling their team. They are adults after all. All of this aside, there is goodness in taking attendance in meetings and other events where people are expected to be.
Read MoreI'm a product of countless leaders I encountered in my military career. I watched all of them intently - copied methods and words which worked, discarded things which did not. I never found the perfect leader. One does not exist but I took away all the good and I practice it today. I remember sayings which I thought were particularly bad and, as I coach and lead people, I refrain from saying them. Here are a few.
Read MoreWhat exactly are we being asked to do? What are all the tasks and sub-tasks involved? Who doesn't want total clarity? Unfortunately that is not possible. It is unrealistic to believe that a leader can determine and direct every action involved with a project, mission, or problem to be solved, especially, and most importantly, how it will affect people. Therefore, it is incumbent on individuals and teams to determine those tasks, not specifically directed, which will lead to accomplishment of the mission, and how they affect people.
Read More"NCOs fly by the seat of their pants Rob. Officers read the book." A commander of mine once told me that when coaching me on my role as a young officer. NCOs or non-commissioned officers, the sergeants of the Army, had (and still have) a tremendous reputation built on experience and knowledge. NCOs taught me practically everything about being an infantryman. My boss was generalizing of course, to emphasize principle - the manuals which guided everything we did in the Army. My lack of experience would be overcome by reading, following, and enforcing principles. My NCO teammate could achieve expediency guided by his or her experience. I needed both.
Read MoreLeaders should be cautious of those things which drain the energy or demotivate their people in the workplace. A demotivated person will not perform at their peak or worse, may choose to "quiet quit" or leave the company for good. The key is truly knowing your people. In my book, "It's Personal, Not Personnel," I quote Corinda Lubin-Katz a creative writer who states, "...knowing someone lends itself to an organic ability to anticipate their reaction to things - to know when and how their anger will thaw, what sparks their passion and what that passion looks like, and what constitutes an expression of their love..." Getting to this level of knowledge takes time, hence the word investment. It comes through shared experiences, social (outside work) interaction, and quality one-on-one time.
Read MoreAlmost every big event in a business requires a narrative - the announcement and explanation given by a leader to the organization's people. If left to chance or just left unsaid, the rank and file will create the narrative on its own and it could be horribly wrong. Rumors can form which poison the climate and culture of a business. I frequently felt this requirement and responsibility to communicate with my people, especially after something important happened. I formed and took ownership of the narrative. I saw it as a choice. Own it or surrender it.
Read MoreIn any organization, there will always exist tension between those doing the work and those directing it. The 'higher headquarters' sends directives downward to a confused, overworked, and disgruntled 'rank and file.' The 'rank and file' does its work each day ignorant of the big picture and the clever work of 'higher headquarters' developing such an impactful task designed to take the organization to new heights. In this battle of us against them, the rank and file, because they are doing the physical labor, seem to get a greater level of empathy. It is a leader's job, therefore, as a member of neither to create understanding and harmony - to remain a neutral figure.
Read More"You don't manage my expectations, I manage yours." A boss of mine once stated this in a meeting when a subordinate offered to manage his expectations. Aside from being thankful it was not me on the receiving end of that response, it got me thinking, "what is with this phrase?" "Is it useful?" One thing I took from his response was, this phrase would be reserved for the leader's not the subordinate's use. Hmm. Maybe the phrase but not the concept.
Read MorePresident Vladimir Putin has taken to recruiting to fill the ranks of the Russian military to fuel his contemptible war in Ukraine. By several news accounts it is not going well. There are reports of men defecting, population protests, and even the pardoning of jailed thieves and criminals. I wonder if this is truly a recruiting campaign or something more like coercion of military-age males. Regardless, whether it is a nation like Russia or even a small company looking to fill its ranks, it helps to have a noble cause.
Read MoreLet me introduce you to the SITREP or Situation Report. The SITREP is a military term abbreviated for use in tactical communication. In combat we had to communicate in short sentences or singular words to prevent the enemy from intercepting our signal. A commander could call another unit or person by their call sign and ask for an update by stating, "SITREP over." 'Over' means end of transmission.
Read MoreDelegation is a problem in many organizations. Leaders do not delegate for three reasons - fear, guilt, or laziness. They fear that a subordinate will get something wrong, hurt the organization, or make them look bad. They are too lazy to invest the time training and developing someone so they do it themselves. Or they feel guilty delegating work to an already busy person.
Read MoreWhen I counseled (appraised/coached) my people in the Army I would always have a career timeline handy. It was important to review it and to offer sage advice on what jobs the individual needed, what skills they needed to develop, and where they needed to position themselves for career advancement - rank, pay, and assignment. In the Army I could see more than a decade into the future of one's career and it was a vitally important part of my counseling sessions. The wrong move could make an officer or non-commissioned officer less competitive for advancement or even bring their career to a halt. I enjoyed passing on my career lessons and helping my people achieve not only higher rank but also fulfillment in their lives. It was my duty as a leader.
Read MoreLast week I learned of the death of Queen Elizabeth II, like most big headlines these days, on my phone. It was an all too casual, anti climatic, and disappointing way to receive such big news - incongruous of her majesty. I guess I'm just old fashion and accustomed to learning of such headlines more formally. It gave me pause. It was more than a passing headline, it was the end of an era - the closure of an unprecedented reign of leadership. It was hard to fathom what this woman had seen and experienced in her life - how she had been thrust into a position of leadership and remained steadfast and loyal for more than 70 years.
Read MoreConsider this scenario. Leader: "Can you please work on your tardiness to meetings and your arrival to work in the morning? It is not fair to the rest of the team and it is not emblematic of who we are as an organization." Subordinate: "Yes. I'm sorry. I will." Leader: "Ok, thank you." Note the 'how' is left out and that, in my experience, is a leadership error.
Read MoreLoyalty is defined as a strong feeling of support or allegiance but the word and concept of loyalty is incomplete without some direction and, moreover, demonstration. Where does your loyalty arrow point? For me it is mainly in four directions. I'll call them the cardinal directions one might find on a compass. Everyone knows the four cardinal directions; North, South, East, and West. Here we will use up, down, left, and right.
Read MoreWhat in the world? Do we really have a term like this or, moreover, people engaging in this activity? It seems so. According to Wikipedia (yes, Wikipedia actually includes quiet quitting in its archives) quiet quitting emerged in mid 2022 as a term and trend meaning, not quitting one’s job but rather, doing only what is required and nothing more. The concept is centered around loyalty to self - avoiding work burnout and achieving a better work/life balance. When I first heard it, I confess, I was angered. I’m 55 and I’ve been employed since the age of 15. I was taught by my parents to be an exceptional employee – to work hard. While I may not have always been the best employee, I’ve almost always gone the extra mile for my co-workers and my company. I excelled under this philosophy, and I enjoy the fruits of that hard work today. Add to this my twenty seven years in a military uniform and three combat tours – quitting is not in my vocabulary. I detest people who chose to quit and sleep like a baby a night.
Read MoreHave you ever heard this, "They are going to be upset when they see this..." or "They want us to..."? Who is being referred to in this statement? As a leader I do not let my people escape statements like these. I ask them to define they. They by itself is ill-defined and, as a leader, unless we (the subordinate and I) clearly know who we are referring to, I ask for clarity. I do this not as punishment or out of anger (yes, I can get frustrated) but to gain understanding, avoid confusion, and prevent chaos.
Read MoreI've seen many a leader reluctant to direct someone unless they knew how to do what had to be done. It is a feeling of guilt and incompetence which can stifle leadership. Indeed I've felt it but I've had the good fortune to watch other leaders, mostly Army Non-commissioned Officers - sergeants lead without knowing exactly how to do something. What I learned was that while they may not have known the specific steps and resources required to fix a problem, they knew enough to know there must be a fix. Stay with me.
Read MoreMany years ago as an Army Captain, I served as a company commander - a leader of about 100 soldiers. Command was an assignment typically two years in length and my time in the position was coming to a close. I needed to schedule my change of command ceremony - a requirement to relinquish command officially, but I didn't want it to look like I wanted 'out' of this leadership duty. I went to see a senior officer close to my boss to discuss it with him. He was busy as we all were but he pulled up the unit calendar and said, "when do you want it to occur?" Perplexed, I replied, "Sir, I can't schedule my own ceremony. Doesn't the boss determine that?" Right then he offered a piece of advice which stuck - "Rob, sometimes it is best just to place the event on the calendar. Doing so will make it official enough."
Read MoreI do come across leaders who find themselves frustrated at the reaction, even lack of action of their people. They feel their intent or instructions are misunderstood or they wonder why their people react to them the way they do. Of course I always coach them to look in the mirror first. It is hard and the human ego will steer us away from self-criticism. "What did I do or not do to cause this?" "Where did I fail in my instructions?"
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