How to Pick a Leader

June 17, 2024

Good morning! Happy Monday, Fathers’ Day, Flag Day, Juneteenth, Dairy Month, Jean-Baptiste, US Open, Strawberry Season… choose one — or all. Gotta love those cows — just please stay away from the birds! Raise your hand if this isn’t the sweetest lawn mowing season since Eisenhower was President. When’s the last time you attempted a home repair and had the perfectly correct tool(s)? Who knew it?!  Ramen is banned from college dorms and elsewhere in Denmark — certain varieties and vintages — for being too spicy. Stupid Dad Joke: My Dad always said he got his best sleep on public transportation… great guy, terrible bus driver. Elon gets (another) $56,000,000… or, wait a minute, hold on… breaking news, this isn’t over yet. Even when you’re the best, or among the best, you’re not infallible. The important thing is to keep moving in the right direction — and to accept setbacks and detours as normal, even for those who are among the very best. This week’s example:  Scottie Scheffler

(Note to self:  Can you be among the best?  Wouldn’t it have to be, among the better?  There can only be one best.)

• More bad news, maybe, for downtown Saint Paul (Minnesota).
  • According to Halter/ Axios (2024), not only is the major private commercial property owner pulling out, but State government is considering it as well.
  • The capitol (and the capital) will likely remain, but thousands of workers associated with different functions of government might move.
  • That leaves, what?  Hockey, music concerts, and ice sculptures.  (Apologies to our readers with an affinity for the city!) 
  • Other State Capital cities have suffered similar fates; e.g., Lincoln’s Springfield, IL.
• Relationships:  There is more and more research suggesting healthy relationships improve not only happiness, but longevity.
  • Assuming they are healthy relationships, of course… plenty that aren’t, sadly.
• More and more people in the United States are sourcing their daily diets from gas stations.
  • Casey’s, a midwestern petroleum depot, was recently named the fifth largest pizza restaurant in the country by raw number (Lee).
  • We’ve had a vague awareness of this phenomenon, but had no idea of the magnitude, nor of the ascendancy in popularity of this nontraditional pizzeria.
  • Would it pass muster — or the crispy crust test — in Brooklyn?!
• This just in:  University of Minnesota undergraduate students get a 4.5% tuition hike.
  • We are hesitant to dive into the tempestuous waters of higher education — and we likely won’t get any college presidents as clients as a result, but…
  • … dive we must because the topic is too important to ignore.
  • And, these ships might have sailed, but perhaps one or more will find its way back to a safe harbor.
  • The following observations are informed by the Huron Consulting Group:
    • There is a huge optimism gap between the perceptions of senior college administrators and faculty.
    • Fifty-six percent of administrators are ‘very’ to ‘extremely’ optimistic about their college’s future compared to 23% of faculty feeling the same way.
    • Sixty-two percent of faculty report morale and burnout as the #1 priority to address, whereas administrators (56%) cite enrollment growth as the top priority.
    • Faculty report enrollment growth as the second-most important priority while both faculty and administrators point to budget and financial challenges in the top tier of concerns.
    • Seventy-two percent of administrators rank shared governance as ‘somewhat strong’ to ‘extremely strong’, whereas only 31% of faculty score it that high.
      • What administrators want from faculty:
      • A demonstrated willingness to embrace change
    • What faculty want from administrators:
      • Clear communication
      • Financial transparency
      • A seat around the table — collaboration — on policy creation.
  • Ninety percent of senior administrators and 63% of faculty say that they are ‘very’ or ‘extremely ready’  to work together to ensure a resilient future for their institution.
    • Go for it!
• Why is it we like narcissists?
  • The best explanation was given by Freud, Sigmund, that is.
    • It’s a subliminal and acceptable way to love ourselves.
    • Narcissists promise us the world and tell us that we are amazing and that we should follow them, because they know the answers to all the questions and they are invincible.
    • They seduce us with these megalomaniac visions.
    • It’s a very populist and seductive (tactic).
    • We’re seduced by them (narcissists), and in the modern era, we have come to this notion that leaders have to be entertaining and charismatic.
    • Whereas many generations ago we could look straight at the evidence as to whether someone could hunt or fish or was courageous…”  (Chamorro-Premuzic)
  • When looking for leaders we should:
    • Try to ignore everything that is style and not substance.
    • We should also de-emphasize things like credentials, expertise, and experience, especially when they apply to something people have done before but is not so relevant for the future.
    • Less focus on hard skills and more focus on the right soft skills.
    • Fundamentally, leaders need to make other people better, including by helping them collaborate effectively.  (Ibid.)