A couple of weeks ago I ran into a guy by the name of Stan Parker. An interesting guy. He has a new little tiny book called Smile and Move: A Reminder to Happily Serve.  Here’s what he says: How to smile:  Wake up. Show others you care by giving attention to their needs. Be thankful. The opportunity to serve is a gift, not an entitlement.  Be approachable. We’re at each other’s service and contact is where it starts. Complain less. We have work to do. Smile. Really. It’s where pleasantness begins. How to move:  Start early and go long. Get lost in your service to others. Exceed expectations. Dismiss mediocrity. Expect more from yourself. Have a sense of urgency. Predict and pre-sweat the details for others. Be resourceful and resilient. Service is about giving someone what they need, no matter what. So I kind of like that: A Reminder to Happily Serve.  And I love the quote he has in the back from Ralph Waldo Emerson:  "Write it in your heart that every day is the best day of the year."  I hope you’re having a really fabulous day. Thanks for being happy. It’s a special occasion. Posted in Health, Leadership, Life, Love, Optimism, Passion, Relationships

I was fortunate enough to see Betsy Myers deliver a keynote recently. Betsy said a really interesting thing that I think is worth sharing with you all. She said that some people start from a place of "yes" and the result they get is adventure. Some people start from a place of "no" and the result they attain is safety. She said that there seem to be more naysayers in the world than "yes"-sayers. She has this wonderful concept about leaning into life—you know, really going after your life. She was telling this audience of government workers how, if you’re bored, if you’re not having any fun, if you’re not passionate about what you are doing, then change your job. Find something that brings out the best in you. Find something that makes you passionate about things. I thought that was really good. I love that idea about leaning into life. What are you doing today? Are you passionate? Are you excited about what you’re doing? If you’re not, let’s see if you can find another spot where you can get excited and passionate. Life is a very special occasion and you don’t get a lot out of it if you back off of life. You get a lot if you lean into it. So take care of yourself. Have a great day. And remember, we need all support and encouragement. Posted in Change, Corporate Governance, Life, Passion, Relationships, Workplace Culture

Have you seen the moon recently? It was absolutely incredible. And last night when the sun was about to set, we went out on the deck and watched the sun set. It was just unbelievable. I was just struck by all the fabulous things that are free—Looking at the moon at night, a sunset, going over to the beach and sitting and watching the waves, or sitting down and enjoying the view of the mountains and hills, or walking through the woods and enjoying the flowers. Hearing the cry of a newborn baby—just wonderful, wonderful things that really are free.                Rabbi Kushner, who wrote When Bad Things Happen to Good People, wrote a wonderful book called Why God?  In that book he tells about, when the first astronaut went up, everybody in the country had their TV on and was watching. And when the second astronaut went up, you watched if you were home but you didn’t if you weren’t. And with the third, they had him play golf on the moon for anybody to pay attention. He said that we get tired of things made by man, but we never get tired of a babbling brook, a sunset, or those kinds of things. So next weekend, no matter what’s happening around you, you can always take a walk and look at the beauty of nature, and know that things are all right in that realm and they are free for all of us. Posted in Change, Happiness, Health, Life, Love, Optimism, Passion

There is an old Chinese proverb:  "Tell me and I forget; Show me and I remember; Involve me and I understand."   The whole thing, I think, in dealing with change is how we can involve people. I think your intention should be to involve your people as much as you possibly can in how you are dealing with tough times. Just telling people something, and even trying to show them, doesn’t make as much difference as involving them. It doesn’t do good to do something to people; you have to do it with them. So involve people around you as you are dealing with different challenges. Life is a very special occasion if you realize you’re not alone. And as my friends Don Carew and Eunice Parisi-Carew have said for a long time, "None of us is as smart as all of us." Posted in Communication, Leadership, Life, Servant Leadership, Teamwork

I really like my friend B. J. Gallagher’s little book called Staying the Course.  B. J. says, "Our journey in life is about progress, not perfection."  (Boy, isn’t that true.) "It’s not about doing one thing 100 percent better, it’s about doing a number of things one percent better each day. Progress is evolutionary, not revolutionary. Most days we measure our progress in inches, not miles."  (That’s feedback, that’s the breakfast of champions!)  "What matters most is showing up for your life, whether you feel like it or not. Ask yourself, ‘What two or three things can I do today that would move me forward?’"  (That’s a very good question—what could you do?)  "You’d be amazed at how much distance you could cover by taking it in increments. The little things add up. The inches turn to miles and we string together our efforts like so many pearls. Before long, look what you have—a whole strand.  Ahhh—beautiful!"   So, what can you do today to keep going?  To keep making a difference for your customers and for each other?  Remember, things are about progress. One thing at a time. One small step can change your life. So take that step today. Posted in Communication, Happiness, Health, Leadership, Making Mistakes, Optimism, Passion

You know, I was recently listening to a tape by a wonderful young guy named Matthew Barnett, who heads up the Dream Center in Los Angeles. I’m on the board there. They have taken over an old hospital that was condemned, and they have refurbished the whole thing through money raised. They have 1400 people living there; people who are really learning how to turn their lives around. They also have a church, a temple, that was given to them and they run services there. Matthew is just an amazing guy. The essence of his talk was that, when he took over and started to plant the church and they had nothing, he was mainly focused on his own success and thinking about how many people he could get to come to church. And all of a sudden one day, when things were really going downhill for this church, he realized his problem—it had been all about him. And when he got that he was there to serve, and he went out into the streets and met with the people and talked and walked with them and helped and served them and all, slowly they began to trust him. And they started to come to him. And then he was able to, unbelievably, get control of this old hospital. He said when he turned the corner and really realized that life is about serving, not being served, that just made all the difference. Posted in Communication, Happiness, Health, Leadership, Life, Making Mistakes, Optimism, Passion, Profit, Servant Leadership

I found a wonderful quote about how doing well is a decision you make. It’s from Abraham Lincoln: "Most folks are about as happy as they make up their minds to be."  That’s really true. So you can choose how you are going to feel on any given day. So I hope today you choose to be happy. It seems to be a beautiful day and life is a very special occasion. So go for it. Posted in Happiness, Life, Optimism, Passion

A great comment I heard recently from our consultant, Tommy Moore, was: "There is no hall of fame for critics,"  Ha! I just love that. A lot of times, people are really good at taking shots at what other people are doing. That’s not really very helpful. Redirection is so much different than criticism:  Here’s something that has happened, here’s how it has impacted things, here’s what would really help next time, and I’m still excited about working with you.  That’s really kind of a nice thing.  But we also have to remember, if you do ever get criticism, that feedback is the breakfast of champions, as Rick Tate always used to say.  The best response to any kind of criticism, if you get it, is:  "Tell me more. Is there anyone else I should talk to? Oh, this is so helpful."  That will really blow people’s minds because you won’t be defensive or anything. You won’t get your ego in the way.  Don’t criticize yourself or other people. Give ‘em a hug. That’s what they could really use. Posted in Change, Conflict, Education, Feedback, Happiness, Health, Leadership, Making Mistakes, Optimism, Relationships, Servant Leadership, Teamwork

I’ve been reading a book by Mick Ukleja, who is one of my good buddies. It’s called The Ethics Challenge: Strengthening Your Integrity in a Greedy World. He says that one of the ways to keep your integrity high is to harness your moods. He says, interestingly, that a study of red-light violations shows a strong relationship between feeling under pressure and breaking the law. Forty-one percent of the people who go through red lights are doing it on their way to work or to school. But only nine percent of the red light violations were committed by people on vacation. He says, "A basic human frailty is that we allow our moods to master us rather than making sure we master them. You’re probably a lot like us. Sometimes we’ve known what to do, how to do it, and that we ought to do it, but we didn’t do it. You discover that your good intentions can be hijacked by your feelings. We speed through a red light, we cut off another driver, we procrastinate, we shut our minds to others because we’re in a bad mood. It’s easy, especially in pressure situations, to let our moods master us. So we really need to harness our moods. When you feel like you’re in a mood, go walk around the building. Go walk around your house. Get yourself back under control so that you can do what you know is right."  So don’t be moody. And if you are, recognize it and get it back under control. That’s a good thought for today. Posted in Communication, Conflict, Ethics, Happiness, Health, Leadership, Life, Making Mistakes, Optimism, Servant Leadership, Workplace Culture

We recently offered a workshop at our company called "The Business of You," that my friend Paul Brenner, who is an MBA and a Ph.D., was conducting with Bob Petrello, a longtime colleague of his. Their belief is that if you are self-aware, if you really understand yourself and your past, your needs, and your strengths and weaknesses, then that’s the beginning of being an effective human being. Then you add relationship awareness, which is about understanding the people around you and what makes them tick. Those are the two key things. Then, if you would really like to accomplish something, how do you do it with other people and get their commitment? It’s being relationally aware of them, and if you can do that, and you can get results. It’s so consistent with what we have been saying, which is that great leadership starts with understanding of self. I think it’s just a fascinating thing. Posted in Commitment, Communication, Education, Leadership, Making Mistakes, Optimism