Tag: Leadership

3 Ways Tom Brady Was Extraordinary and You Can Be Too

I’ve been a fan of New England sports teams since I was a kid. But when Tom Brady went to Tampa Bay, I started rooting for the Buccaneers.

Low expectations – high performance:

6 quarterbacks were drafted before Tom Brady.

1. Chad Pennington – drafted 18th. (Played 11 seasons.)
2. Giovanni Carmazzi – drafted 65th. (Never played.)
3. Chris Redman – drafted 75th in the third round. (Started 12 games.)
4. Tee Martin – drafted 163rd in the fifth round. (Played 3 games.)
5. Marc Bulger – drafted 168th in the sixth round. (Played 9 seasons.)
6. Spergon Wynn – drafted 183rd in the sixth round. (Started 3 games.)
7. Tom Brady – drafted 199th in the sixth round. (Played 22 seasons.)

In the 2021 season Brady set a career high in passing yards (5,316) and led the NFL in touchdown passes (43). USA Today

3 ways Tom Brady was extraordinary – and you can be too:

#1. Rise above expectations.

No one could have expected the 199th draft pick would become the undisputed greatest quarterback of all time.

Expect more from yourself than others expect from you.

#2. Always work to improve.

Professional athletes work hard – a few work harder than the rest. Larry Bird of the Celtics, Michael Jordan of the Bulls, and Tom Brady of Tampa Bay, for examples.

“… he never lost that competitive fire to be the best.” John Elway

If you don’t want to be like Tom Brady, be like Will Smith. “… while the other guy’s sleeping? I’m working.”

Of all the times I saw Brady in interviews, I can’t remember him complaining. I’ve seen him upset, but he always focused on getting better, even when his team won.

#3. Practice gratitude.

I know you’re supposed to thank your teammates when you win. But I think Brady actually meant it.

How might you follow Tom Brady’s example today?

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No One of Us Is as Smart as All of Us—Treat People as Partners

New Book Giveaway!

20 copies available!!

Leave a comment on this guest post by Ken Blanchard and Randy Conley to become eligible for one of 20 complimentary copies of their new book, “Simple Truths of Leadership: 52 Ways to be a Servant Leader and Build Trust.“

Deadline for eligibility is 2/5/2022. International winners will receive electronic version.

“No One of Us Is as Smart as All of Us” is a simple truth of leadership that is common sense—why isn’t it common practice?

Brains:

Some leaders think all the brains are in their office.

Self-serving leaders spend lots of time trying to prove they are in charge. They think it’s their job to look over everyone’s shoulder and check that things are being done ‘correctly’. Sadly, these leaders miss the reality that people are capable of much more than they are given credit for.

Trustworthy servant leaders let people bring their brains to work.

These leaders see team members as partners, not subordinates. They understand leadership is about working side-by-side with people, freely communicating and sharing information.

How can you encourage and strengthen high-performing teams?

Smarter together:

#1. Face the facts.

The people around you already know you don’t know everything.

People don’t buy it when you act like you have all the answers. They know you don’t. There’s no shame in admitting you aren’t perfect. In fact, it will demonstrate vulnerability and help you earn their trust.

#2. Ask for help.

When you have a problem to solve, let your people know you need their suggestions. Involving people in decision-making is smart—and the best way to respect people’s experience and insight.

#3. Respect contribution

Worried that some team members are thinking of joining the “Great Resignation”? Acknowledge their hard work and explain why their role in the company is important.

When people feel valued, they think less about jumping ship.

You know how much you need everyone on your team. So tell them. Treat them as partners. Let them know you value their strengths and their input. You’ll quickly realize it’s the best way to lead.

How might leaders treat people like partners?

Ken Blanchard and Randy Conley talk leadership with Dan Rockwell:

Listen to Ken and Randy talk about pivotal moments in their journey. Ken talks about Egos Anonymous.

Ken Blanchard/Randy Conley:

Ken Blanchard is the bestselling author or coauthor of more than 65 books including the iconic The One Minute Manager®, and Chief Spiritual Officer of The Ken Blanchard Companies®. Randy Conley…

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How Managers Confront Us/them-thinking and Win

Us/them-thinking comes naturally to everyone, even children. 

Imagine giving blue shirts to one group of children and yellow to another. Us/them-thinking will animate perception quickly. Children think my group is better than your group. One researcher proved this.

“Kids started to think the blue was different from the yellow,” Rebecca Bigler Ph.D., says. “What comes very quickly after that is, ‘the blues are better than the yellows.’”

Us/them-thinking in life:

I worked in a group that was housed separate from the main division. I felt our group worked hard and delivered better results than the rest of the division. I lost the luxury of superiority when we were brought under the same roof. Those ‘bad’ people were actually talented hard-working colleagues.

We’re prone to illogical bias.

I asked a VP of Apple what people saw in him. Among other things, he said, “It doesn’t hurt that I’m 6’5”.” Research shows that, “… people hold implicit biases against short people.” Tall people are more likely than short people to be hired and promoted.

Us/them-thinking in organizations:

Us/them-thinking permeates organizational life. ‘Them’ tends to be bad. ‘Us’ tends to be good.

1. Boss/employee.
2. Corporate/local.
3. Inexperience/experience.
4. Old/young.
5. Men/women.
6. Government/citizens.
7. Republican/Democrat.
8. Parents/teachers.
9. White/black.
10. Tall/short.
11. Union/management.
12. My team/your team.

Denying the reality of us/them-thinking propagates irrational decisions.

Leaders are suffocated by us/them-thinking every day. Suppose you’re charged to integrate two teams, for example. ‘Them’ is the enemy. ‘Us’ is the good people.

How managers confront us/them-thinking and win:

1. Acknowledge us/them thinking is unfair, irrational, and adversarial.
2. Agree on shared meaningful goals. Work for mutual benefit.
3. Establish cross-functional leadership. When one loses, we all lose.
4. Embrace ‘we’-talk. Words are rudders.
5. Institute cross-dependencies that require ‘we’ behaviors to win.
6. Promote people who practice ‘we’ behaviors.
7. Have leaders from one team honor members of the other team.

‘We’ cultures win. Us/them cultures rot from within.

Where do you see us/them-thinking in your organization?

How might leaders confront us/them-thinking and win?

Added resources:
5 Essentials of Culture Building

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How to Not Do Anything Stupid with Your New Team

A young manager with a new team is like an ant pushing an elephant. It’s smart to be concerned.

My friend Stan Endicott tells managers who ask for advice, “Don’t do anything stupid.”

Aspiration isn’t the problem. But persistent stupidity defeats the brightest among us. Sometimes the smarter we are, the stupider we get.

How to not do anything stupid:

Young managers succeed by aspiration, openness, and NOT doing anything stupid.

Make a list of 10 stupid things you don’t want to do in the first 90 days of leading your team. Share your list with a mentor or coach. Be sure they have lots of experience. Here are a few suggestions.

It’s stupid to:

1. Think the same way about yourself.
2. Keep doing your old job in the same way.
3. Expect that you’re going to do everything right.
4. Jump right in before building relationships.

How to be smart:

#1. Show up with confidence, not arrogance.

Spend some time acknowledging challenges, but don’t circle the blackhole. What words will you use that express heart and belief?

#2. Practice apologizing, not blaming. (Literally)

Imagine that you screwed up. What will you say? Work on taking responsibility.

Always turn toward the future after apologizing for the past.

Get with a coach or mentor and literally practice your apology. You’re going to need it.

#3. Show up with big ears and a small mouth.

Send the following questions to the team before your first meeting.

1. Imagine the best team ever. How does that team treat each other?
2. What do we expect from each other?
3. What will we do when someone drops the ball?
4. How do we want to feel about our team? What behaviors are likely to foster those feelings?
5. How will we make decisions?

Tip: Learn how to run meetings people love to attend.

How does an ant move an elephant? With lots of help.

What are some stupid things people do when managing a new team?

What suggestions do you have for a young manager taking on a new team?

Suggested reading:

Start with Why

Thinking, Fast and Slow

Smart Leadership

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Taking Time Off isn’t the Answer

Taking time off isn’t the answer when you don’t know how to live. A four-day workweek is pointless for miserable people.

Do you live to work or work to live? The answer is YES.

Taking time off isn’t the answer if you’re frantic and distracted during time on. Living for the weekend is futility.

Unrelenting obligations seduce you into the false belief that life is meaningful.

Work is futility when your body shows up but your heart stays home.

Time off isn’t the answer:

Wherever you go, take yourself with you.

#1. Taking time to start slowly.

“Start the day slowly.” Ken Blanchard

Self-reflection is a lighthouse.

It doesn’t take long to start your day slowly, only 10 or 15 minutes.

Tell your task-list you’ll be right there. Engage in spiritual practice.

1. Read.
2. Pray.
3. Meditate.
4. Breathe
5. Write in a journal.
6. Set an intention for the day.
7. ????

You already crashed if you leave home without yourself.

A short morning ritual is a point of stability in a turbulent world.

#2. Taking time for self-development.

Arrogant self-sufficiency destroys us and laughs when we crash.

The dumbest thing leaders say is, “I’m too busy to take time for self-development.”

Sharpen your ax or you will work yourself into oblivion.

#3. Taking time to practice gratitude.

1. Schedule gratitude walkabouts. (or zoom calls.)
2. Write down one point of gratitude before you go to bed. It’s OK if you want to write more.
3. Jot down three positive qualities of the people on your team.

#4. Taking time to lower your expectations.

There is a measure of futility in everyone’s life. Every pursuit or aspiration is a reminder that you aren’t there yet, and you never will be. Accept it.

What does living well look like in a turbulent world?

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Multitasking Makes you Stupid: Single-Tasking is Smarter

You can’t move forward when you’re running in circles.

You can’t efficiently do two complex tasks at the same time.

We’re addicted to constant distraction and repeated interruption. You feel insecure if your phone stops buzzing, for example.

Multitasking protects many of us from our insecurities.

Three versions of multitasking:

1. Perform two tasks simultaneously.
2. Perform tasks in rapid succession.
3. Switch between two tasks, multi-switching.

Five reasons we multi-switch:

1. Job requirements. Think of an emergency medical technician.
2. Disrespect. Colleagues and bosses don’t respect time.
3. Slow progress. “Let’s do something else. This isn’t working.”
4. Boredom. Sometimes switching improves attention.
5. Distraction. We’re addicted to distraction. If you don’t think so, sit quietly and calmly for 15 minutes.

Rapidly switching between tasks can cost as much as 40% of someone’s productivity time**. You also add switching-fatigue.

You expend energy doing tasks, but switching tasks also requires energy.

Multitasking makes you stupid:

Multitasking makes you stupid.

Some are better at multitasking than others, but some multitasking men had their IQ drop to the IQ of an 8-year-old*.

Single-tasking is smarter:

#1. Create time-chunks:

Suppose your average ability to focus is 20 minutes. Create several 20-minute chunks of time on your schedule to complete important tasks or reach milestones on large tasks.

Put your phone in the drawer for 20 minutes.

#2. Turn stuff off:

Open email. Use it. Turn it off.

Open the browser. Use it. Close it.

#3. Refresh frequently:

1. Stretch.
2. Close your eyes and breathe.
3. Walk around the block.
4. Get water instead of keeping it at your desk.

#4. Be present when you show up:

Noticing is being present.

You might notice what you see. Or you might set out to notice something specific like the energy level of your team members.

How might leaders move toward single-tasking?

*To Multitask or Not to Multitask | USC Online

**Multitasking: Switching costs (apa.org)

Multitasking, Productivity, and Brain Health (verywellmind.com)

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Influence – Sobering Truths and Delightful Opportunities

“… financial advisors are 37% more likely to commit misconduct if they encounter a new co-worker with a history of misconduct.” HBR

“… individuals tend to mirror the food choices of others in their social circles, which may explain one way obesity spreads through social networks.” Harvard Gazette

“When one employee leaves, the departure signals to others that it might be time to take stock of their options, what researchers call ‘turnover contagion.’”

59% consider quitting when a co-worker quits. NYT

Acknowledge influence:

You are you, in part, because of others. If I met five of your co-workers before meeting you and all of them hated work…

you probably hate work.

Three responsibilities of influencers:

The opposite of being influenced is responsibility.

Take responsibility for your splash-power – the impact of your presence on others.

What’s true of people after you’re done splashing on them?

#1. Notice the things that influence you.

If you don’t notice your influences, you are controlled by them.

This is as simple as falling prey to click-bate. You wakeup in 15 minutes having forgotten what you were looking for in the first place.

Click-bate is distracting influence. People create it to serve themselves, not you.

Distracting influences dilute the impact of your life.

#2. Choose your influences.

Hang out with people who reflect who you would like to become.

“Show me your friends and I’ll show you your future.” Unknown

#3. Be an influence.

1. Think more about your impact on others than their impact on you.
2. Choose your water. Show up to splash encouragement, insight, and energy on people.
3. Like people. See their strengths. Work to help them achieve their goals. Liking is a powerful influencer.

The people who influence you are the people who believe in you. Henry Drummond

Who are the positive influencers on your team? How are you multiplying their impact?

How might leaders maximize their splash-power?

It’s Today!

Join me on zoom TODAY for a live conversation with Mark Miller, VP of High Performance Leadership at Chic-Fil-A. I’ll ask some questions. Join in the open Q&A. There will be prizes.

We’re celebrating the launch of Mark’s tenth book, “Smart Leadership.”

Register here: https://bit.ly/3yMLpxY

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