Musings on a Monday Morning from Mike Mullin…

The weekly Newsletter of Without A Vision Consultancy LLC

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March 23, 2020 – This is it for January, Sorry…

Good morning!

Day #27 of the COVIDs here in Central Minnesota.

Good morning! I’m reminded of the dullness of early spring as I hike around the neighborhoods looking for photo opportunities; there’s not much beyond brown, drab, leftover wintry dirt, a bit of snow where the sun don’t shine, last November’s leaves matted in the mud, and grit everywhere, testimony to futile efforts aimed at making the ice less slippery. A persistent east wind causes fifty degrees to feel like thirty and maybe colder; an east wind is unnatural in the Midwest, and yet it persists for days. But wait, the grass is greening ever so slightly on the southern slopes, the rhubarb is up, the tulips are peeking through the just-thawed soil, buds on the silver maples are exploding with pollen, the gametophyte/ sporophyte stages of prehistoric moss on rotting logs are spectacularly verdant; robins provide constant rhythmic support to the shrill soprano solos of cardinals in the treetops, tender new chives, planted years ago by the four-year-old — just the tips — can be harvested for a succulent, savory treat to top supper’s baked potato, or a few tender snips will delicately enhance almost anything, perhaps the cheese for Happy Hour. Tell the truth, tell it all, tell it now, tell it OFTEN — we can handle it.

• How are you doing at keeping your distances?
  • My son who lives alone/ works from home in New Jersey has made himself a Wilson to keep him company as the COVIDs rage just outside his door.
• By early this morning we were to have been in the middle of Illinois motoring our way toward Chattanooga and Augusta to witness The Masters — A Tradition Like None Other, but…
  • … as you might have heard, Augusta National is closed for the COVIDs.
  • Courtesy of my sister who lives near the course we have tickets to this year’s tournament; I was looking forward to a practice round with Tiger Woods.
  • Just think, the average of our two scores would be right around 100, maybe 99 — which would be a first for me to have scored in the double digits.
  • Since The Masters is in no small way an aesthetic experience, why not still have the event on television, just absent the golf and the crowds… give us the sun, Ray’s Creek, the undulations, the flowering dogwoods, and the mesmerizing melodies of those southern birds.
• It should be called physical distancing instead of social distancing, but it’s probably too late to petition for a vocabulary amendment; we want and need social connections.  
• If you’re among my readers (thank you!) caring for small children during the COVIDs, especially if that isn’t your norm, be sure to ask for support before you need it.
  • And that support can range from temporary relief from the very practical overwhelming physical demands…
  • … to the exhausting cumulative effect of the social/ emotional/ psychological stress.
  • I mean, it’s hard enough during so-called normalcy when you can escape for awhile, but 24 hours a day — for going on four weeks?!  (Thank you!)
• Someone suggested they should award this summer’s unused Olympic medals to grocery store and Rx workers, truckers, nurses, agricultural supply chain workers, Food Dudes, doctors, plumbers, restaurateurs and their staffs, sanitation workers, public safety officers, and ______________.
  • If there aren’t enough to go around, let’s make some more.
• “Panic is not an investment strategy.”  (Charles Schwab — and probably numerous others)
• To what music are you listening?
  • Throughout this past week, a little bit of each:  Brahms (thanks, Brian); Bach, Frank, Campbell, Debussy, Alpert, Liszt, Bocelli, Tchaikovsky, Wheels on the Bus, Itsy Bitsy Spider, and that Shark song.
• What are you reading?  Strategy Beyond the Hockey Stick, (Bradley, Hirt, Smit)
  • “…Its analysis of the human elements of strategy-making — social, psychological, and political — cuts to the heart of why most strategies are banal and fail to focus action…  The great contribution of this book is that it joins the hard data side to the equally crucial — and largely ignored — arena of social dynamics and human leadership… it is this rare combo of the hard and the soft that makes Strategy Beyond the Hockey Stick so distinctive.” (Review)
• A crisis is when it is most important for leaders to uphold a vital aspect of their role:  Making a positive difference in people’s lives.
  • Doing this requires leaders to acknowledge the personal and professional challenges employees and their loved ones experience during and throughout the crisis. (Unknown attribution)

For my good friend, Marianna, and anyone wanting/ needing inspiration:  “This is the perfect time to be among the founders of the new normal.”  (YT)
Please remember to tell others about me; I sure appreciate it.I work with individuals, governance structures (Boards), non-profits, and businesses wanting to be bigger, better, stronger, healthier, happier… yes, all five are possible and best done in concert, but it typically requires a coach (consultant) or a companion to help illuminate the path.At Without a Vision Consultancy LLC — www.withoutavision.org — we LISTEN, we LEARN, we LISTEN some more, and only then do we suggest strategic directions unique to your situation.  We do not bring a one-size-fits-all template, nor the latest flash-in-the-pan solutions, to working with you.As we work with you we deliver and provide an increase in your CONFIDENCE, and CLARITY while providing coaching and companionship for your journey.We bring more than fifty years of experience from all sides of the Board table in thirteen different leadership roles — 26 of those years as a CEO.

Everyone loves taking little quizzes; here’s one for you right now:  could you benefit from leadership coaching?

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