January 9, 2023
Good morning! How were your holy days? Here at Without A Vision Consultancy world headquarters we experienced a recent computer glitch which we attempted to fix, but, if you experience any difficulties with this or future editions, please let us know. More than a foot of snow, maybe a foot-and-a-half. It was advertised as a widow(er)-maker snow — a.k.a., heart attack snow. I’m proof it was over-hyped… more than seven hours cumulative of shoveling the heavy, wet, sticky stuff and I’m still here. Lots and lots of postponed client meetings — sorry — we’ll get them rescheduled.
- Movie first or book first?
- Rarely doesn’t it matter, but it might not when it comes to Owens’ Where the Crawdads Sing. (2018)
- Choose one or the other and then dive right in, but choose at least one, don’t wait. One will lead you to the other
- At times you might find yourself transported suddenly and mystically to Maycomb, Alabama.
- Is there anyone among us who would like to challenge the thinking and the teachings of Simon Sinek?
- (A la The Sound of Music) How do you solve a problem like Southwest Airlines?
- Better yet: How do you prevent a problem like Southwest Airlines?
- December 2022 was the fourth worst month since 1792 to have had the traditional 60/40 mix of stocks and bonds. (McQuarrie)
- Only two months during the Great Depression and September of 1974 were worse.
- Do the math on that one.
- Do we HAVE to have a recession? What if inflation dropped and no one noticed? (partial credit to Blinder)
- “When your people need you, make time for them.” (Lovich of BCG)
- “A crisis highlights what leaders need to do in all circumstances: care for people, create safe spaces for conversation, and inspire a sense of purpose.”
- “Leaders should become generative; e.g., How do we make every single person better off every time we interact with them?”
- “How do we ensure that every product (service) we develop will make the world better?”
- “How do we continue to improve the speed, agility, fulfillment, and fun of day-to-day operations?”
- “Leaders need to show empathy, understanding, caring… also to inspire their people with a clear sense of purpose and a vision that motivates and aligns them.”
- “Lead with your heart and have the courage of your convictions.” (Hemerling, BCG)
- “Employees seek a sense of purpose, recognition, coaching, personal development, empathetic listening, and deep caring…”
- (The following credited to Eades, 2023):
- For the most part, only leaders who are tested become great;
- The best way to combat burnout is to remember the deeper purpose behind your work;
- Most leaders should challenge their beliefs (habits?) about the traditional Monday-Friday work model;
- Part of a leader’s job is to root out complacency;
- No longer may an organization neglect personal development in its people.
- Among the top ten buzzwords of the last several months is resilience.
- Exactly what is resilience? Work on your personal definition and application(s).
- Over the next several weeks these Musings will provide — and has historically provided — you with a few quotes from people other than YT which might help you to better understand resilience — and your development of it, or more of it.
- This week’s: “What is to give light must endure burning.” (Frankl, V.)
- “Pour on, I will endure.” (Lear)
“I’m irrationally optimistic.” (Brooks on 2023)
“Flexibility is here to stay.” (Sinek on the future of work for 2023)
“I’m an expert at listening — but I sucked at listening when it came to my family and friends.” (Sinek)
(From M.I.T. Sloan, 2022) –“…When inaccurate or wrong information is repeated, an illusion of truth occurs. People believe repeated information to be true — even when it is not.”
