The Start before the Start

It's hard to believe that we are heading into the last few weeks of 2009. For some it will be, "Good Riddance!", for others, "Not Bad.." or "Hey, we did great!"

Regardless of your expression and feelings about 2009, there is a new year and new opportunities in front of you and the start of your next year officially begins in just 3 weeks! A time of renewal, of re-dedicating ourselves to our purpose and, hopefully, gaining useful insights into the patterns or occurrences of the past year.

I really struggle between helping people through talking about 'Purpose' and helping them through talking about 'Process'. Process isn't sexy. It's not the perception that's given off by World-Renowned, Charismatic, 'Motivational Speakers'! They have the reputation to stir up the inner spirit and to 'motivate' us to believe in the power of the dream and dream and dream and dream!!!

I LOVE THAT! It's what the 'Burled Arch' is all about… Reaching the Dream!

AND my heart goes to, "How?"

I think that it may, actually, be worse to have a dream and not know how to make it happen than to never know what that dream or purpose was in the first place.

You see, there has to be BOTH – purpose and process, "the dream" and "the daily", if we are ever going to reach our "purpose"….. "on purpose"

To start the process, we have 3 areas of focus for the next 3 weeks.

1. What's the dream? Has it changed or revised since the start of last year? (Burled Arch)
   
2. Review and learn from the progress of our race toward the Burled Arch in 2009 (Evaluate and Evolve)
   
3. Purpose the process. (Ready and Checkpoints)
   

The Action for our 'Race' will occur in 2010 – and although it is EXTREMELY cheesy – the only way that we are going to "Win in '10" - is if we have "Purpose" AND "Process" .

I warned you about the 'cheese' factor, right?

To close out 2009 with the most benefit possible let's spend some time this week thinking about the last year. I would encourage you to take a consultants approach to your year, as opposed to a participants approach.

As a participant, you are going to feel all of the bumps and bruises over again as you relive each moment…

As a consultant, we recognize the emotions but search, dig, and glean for the lessons and ways for 'process improvement'

Try to step outside of your year and take a look, if needed – meet with your team or someone outside of you and your team for this process – it will pay tremendous dividends when done right!

The next 3 weeks will be a time of getting ready for the start of 2010. Let's start STRONG – in fact, let's start NOW.

Have a great week!

Iditarod Leadership Book - Now Released for Sale!

We are very excited about the first shipments of the book being released. Please stay tuned for more details and to follow the impact that the book is having on leaders and organizations. To purchase one or more copies of the book, prior to the release into bookstores, please click below:

For Case pricing please email us: Books@IditarodLeadership.com

Key to Success of another New Season

The First of September has always symbolized a change for me. The vacation season is over, kids are back in school and, hopefully, the oppressive heat of the Texas summer will give way to cooler temperatures. We have turned a corner - all the great aspects of fall are on the way and a new found hope with it – even now, the air in the early morning is starting to smell different.

For mushers aspiring to compete in this year's Iditarod – the season is turning their attention to building the strength of their team – to start locking in on the preparation of the team!

Being from Texas, I equate this with football camps - the initial, mini-camp workouts that are designed to start the process of getting everybody's head in the game, evaluating talent, and hitting the weights to build the muscle that will be needed for later. It's time to burn off the 'Goo' – the speed of tomorrow is built on the 'muscle' developed today - It's time to get busy!

As much of an 'Action' guy as I am – I know that the 'action' needed at the beginning of the season centers around preparation. The definition of 'Preparation' talks about a state of 'Readiness' and after all it's Ready, Aim, Fire – not Fire, Ready, Aim!

For our teams and for us as leaders – what is our next step of readiness? What event or 'race' is in the not too distant future that you need to get 'Ready in Advance'?

From the practical side, whether it's preparing for a meeting, the next product launch, or the Iditarod – we can gleam some best practices to improve our skill set:

1. Leverage the past to prepare for the future

• Conduct debrief sessions

• Review and Critique the last Plan / Preparation
  

Is there a way to improve our planning and preparation process? What are our tendencies when it comes to preparation? Who has this strength on our team?

• Review the lessons learned from the last event
  

One of the most powerful methods of current preparation is to avoid repeating past failures or mistakes.

"Those who do not learn from history are doomed to repeat it" - George Santayana

Many times, we hold onto the pain of the experience and forget the lesson – let's flip this and learn the lessons while forgetting the pain!

• What happened in the past?
  
• What were the corresponding results?
  
• What do I need to DO differently? What do we need to DO differently?
  
• What were some of the underlying assumptions that brought us to our previous conclusions?
  
• Were there areas or aspects that we failed to anticipate?
  
• Where did we miss the mark and fail to execute effectively?
  

One of my favorite sayings is, "Today's problems cannot be solved by yesterday's thinking. Yesterday's thinking caused today's problems!"

We'll look at different areas of preparation this week and start to build out the plan for better planning and preparation.

Tomorrow's successes are built on today's preparation! It's a new season. Time to get busy!

Essentials: Being the Real Deal

The Real Deal, Authenticity, setting the standard – whatever the phrase you chose to use – the team will never run beyond your example (unless they are running away!)

As leaders, if we could hear our team – they would say, "Be the real deal". There are so many in this world that are more pretense than present tense… In other words they just aren't real.

I believe with all that is in me that the leader should be the one that set the example – the one that pays more than others pay and gives more than others give – after all – isn't that 'leading the way'?

I LOVE the fact that at times the mushers in the race will jump off the sled and run beside it with the team – to me it speaks about commitment – Leaders must set the example when it comes to commitment and paying the price..

What do we do when it's cold and rainy and we don't want to train? We get up, get out, and train anyway! When we don't 'feel' like paying the price? We pay it anyway!

I just don't know that I could take knowing that my team had a greater commitment level to the cause and a greater work ethic than myself.

My heart is that leadership sets the standard to the point where it goes beyond the status quo – to the point of actually "inspiring" the team to deepen their commitment, deepen their resolve, and creates that incredible culture of 'fanatics'.

'Enthusiasm breeds Enthusiasm' is one of my favorite 'isms'. It breathes the 'fire' and then continuously 'fans the flames' – not in any sense of unfounded 'hype' – but in the uncompromising belief in the cause. A love for the race, and the commitment to pay the price – each and every day – that makes attaining the 'Burled Arch' a reality – and in doing so creates a tremendous sense of pride and purpose within the team. Call me an idealist if you will…. But if we are not bought in and 'sold out' to our cause or mission or race – how would we ever expect anything of greatness out of our team?

Seeing the commitment, tenacity, and determination of a Lance Mackey, Lance Armstrong, Martin Luther King, Ghandi, Mother Theresa –serves to inspire the rest of us – to challenge the rest of us to shake off the tendencies to accept the mediocre and to reach for greatness. People are people and if they can set the example – then we can set the example – think of the 'tracks on the trail' that we will leave for others to follow. This is our 'Leadership Legacy' – our Leadership 'footprint'.

This week – if you feel like slacking up a bit – if it feels like things are crushing in on you – or the storms are hitting your trail – push on! In fact, pick up the pace, just a bit! Throw off the hooks that would seek to drag down or dampen your enthusiasm or resolve.

Leaders are charged with carrying the ingredients for fire on the trail. Where's your fire, today? This morning, to set the resolve for my team to complete a project, I was up and at it before 4 am. When I consult in the hurricane operation – there are few team members that will keep up with the pace that I set for myself. And for those of you that have worked with me and think the pace runs strong – my brother puts me to shame! His work ethic is always pushing me – inspiring me – stretching me in my mind to reach for another level.

The race is worth it – pour your heart and back into it! Set the example - If we are going to be in the race - let's always be real and let's be in it to win it!

Essential Items: Handling Criticism

It's easy to stand on the sidelines and criticize. It doesn't take much to sit in your living room or in a control booth and "Armchair Quarterback" the decisions and actions of those in the race.

If I haven't said it out loud to someone – this is certainly how I've felt., " throw on the parka, build the team, qualify for the race, start running 1100 miles in -50⁰ F and then we'll talk."

A leader takes many hits and some of the most difficult to take are when those you are leading start criticizing your actions, your leadership, or your personhood.

In the studies that Goleman has conducted on EQ (Emotional Intelligence) the findings revealed that a leader's EQ is a greater predictor of their success than IQ. I believe it is a fairly easy result for us to buy into – after all, don't most of us know people who are incredibly book smart and yet lack the 'people skills' necessary to be a success – and I want to unpack that as it relates to handling criticism.

Emotional strength is critical in leadership – in my mind it is one of those essential items – it supports perseverance and is foundational to pulling us through the inevitable 'rough spots' on our leadership trail. When it comes to handling criticism – we have two choices – shut down and build the wall or process what's being said.

So let's walk through a few steps that may help put criticism in perspective:

1. It's going to happen
   

   It is a fact of leadership that you are going to be criticized. It doesn't feel fair and it doesn't seem right – you're the one giving your guts for the company and the team and someone has the nerve to stand there and criticize! And you want to react and say, "If you can do a better job – be my guest!" Another fact is: if you don't want or can't handle criticism, don't be a leader! As the saying goes, "The only way to avoid criticism is to say nothing, attempt nothing, and ultimately, be nothing." Leaders are targets because we're out front and once we realize that criticism is part of being in this 'race' then we can learn to process it and use it for our growth or discard it.
   

2. Consider the Critic
   

   Some people criticize out of pure motives and others have an agenda. There are a number of quotes that have served me well – "Hurting people, hurt people.", "Crabs will pull others down that try to get out of the basket", "You can tell a person by the words they speak". People will criticize because they aren't happy in life and don't want others to be either, because of jealousy, insecurity, or the desire to keep the status quo. Knowing the source will help you to know which to really consider and use for growth and which to moderate. If they have been in the race, mushed their own team, and have your respect – it's much easier to accept!
   

3. Consider the Critique
   

   Consider that even though the source isn't credible there still may be some truth in their statements. Take the time to sift through all of the extra 'stuff' and get down to the real meat of the criticism. One of my mentors would say, "Eat the meat, spit out the bones!" We all have strengths and we all have weaknesses – if this falls into one of the areas of your weaknesses – then so be it! We all need to learn – we all need to grow – this is just lighting up a spot on the trail that you may not have seen before – or you may be in a place that you've never been before and you need this knowledge to be able to qualify for the next race ahead! No one is perfect – life and leadership are growth experiences!
   

4. Seek an outside, trusted perspective
   

   If the criticism came from a trusted advisor, coach, or friend that we knew had our best interests at heart – we would take that in and grow accordingly. Start to find or build a network around you of those that you can present the information to and that will give you appropriate feedback. If they are unwilling or unable to be open, honest, AND supportive – you need to find new counsel. Use that as a guide – find people you can trust that will give you open, honest, and supportive counsel.
   

5. Grow where needed (E-valuate and E-volve)
   

   Some people spend years developing their technical expertise or their educational advantage and somehow they think that 'Relational Skills' are a take it or leave it proposal – my team just needs to 'accept me as I am'. If the criticism centers on your relational connectivity as a leader – realize that you may need to spend as much time on your relational skill set (EQ) as you did on your IQ or TQ (Technical Competence). Where ever the area of growth – hunger for improvement and keep it in perspective – we ALL have areas where we need to grow.
   

6. Keep on mushing!

   You've come too far to turn back now – don't allow nay-sayers and discouragers to keep you from your destiny – you started this race and you can finish it! You are on the trail to something great and when you get there – all of the little 'bumps and bruises' along the way will seem insignificant.
   

I believe in you – you can do this – let me leave you with a great quote from Fred Smith: "No one ever erected a statue to a critic."

Mush on!

Essential items

Competitors in the Iditarod have mandatory items that must accompany them throughout the race - they are to be in the leader's possession - in their "sled" - for the duration of their "race".

This led me to think about some of the mandatory competencies that business leaders should possess. As leaders lead across so many different types of businesses – are there some commonalities that we can draw to say – these are the 'mandatory' items that can determine or affect a leader's success?

One of the top, in my mind, has to be perseverance.

Perseverance comes in many shapes, sizes and reasons – but however a leader gets there – it's crucial to their success.

Dogged determination (pun intended) can come through emotional strength, vision, passion – or just a simplistic hard headed stubbornness that says, "Over my dead body!"

In the midst of a challenging project that was outside of my normal expertise – I was reminded of a quote from Winston Churchill. It came from the unlikeliest of sources – but was right on time! The quote?

"Never, never, never, never give up."

It led me to remember another one of my Churchill favorites:

"The nose of the bulldog is slanted backwards so that it can continue to breathe without letting go!"

I started thinking about perseverance in my life and "paying the price" to succeed. There are so many that I meet that seem to be unwilling to pay the price of leadership or of their dream. Many things can be achieved with the simple will to succeed and the pre-determination to "pay the price."

So why do some make the choice and others don't? That's a mystery to me!

If it is your dream – your 'Destiny" – than how could you quit?

What motivates you to persevere when you want to quit? A parent or mentor's training? Belief in a higher purpose? Raw determination to prove nay-sayers wrong? Fear of financial lack or professional failure?

It's a true statement that necessity is a tremendous motivator. If failure is not an option – than it's only a matter of time until you succeed! And every setback only serves to push you to learn – to push you to change – to push you to improve.

I've said for years that if people think the drive in me that they see is strong or tough – they ought to be on the inside!

The work ethic that I learned from a football analogy is: Keep your head down and your feet moving…

Now – I would change that today to just say, "Keep your head up! And your feet moving…"

When it comes to paying the price, I have heard so many times from my mentor, John Maxwell, "Pay now, Play later" and "If you choose to play now and pay later – the cost will always be greater".

I, usually, put it into financial terms – the sacrifice and investment on the front end yields much greater rewards or dividends on the back end.

Paying the price means we don't quit after the first checkpoint, or the 5^th, or the 17^th – there are 20+ checkpoints – but at the end – our Burled Arch awaits and Success will come to those who simply don't quit – those who never, never, never, NEVER give up!

The Heart of my Leadership

The reason I am drawn to use 'Iditarod' as a metaphor for leadership is that I love the story of what the race commemorates. It embodies a majority of how I approach life and business. It's one of the summary points in Chapter 9 of the book: "Life is lived best when it's lived for others."

In Late January, 1925, Dr. Curtis Welch had come to the realization that what he was facing a deadly outbreak of Diphtheria in the village of Nome, Alaska. Particularly hit hard were the young people and survival hinged on getting the serum. We'll pick the rest up from the introduction in the book:

Finally, - the only serum in Alaska was found.

Where? How many miles? His heart sunk. 1000 miles away? 1000 miles of frozen, Alaskan wilderness away.

The serum was in the care of Dr. J.B. Beeson at the Alaska Railroad Hospital in Anchorage!

How fast can it be transported? The usual method for transportation during the summer months was steamship, but the sea had iced in the town since October and it wouldn't thaw until June. What about planes? Would someone be so daring as to fly during these conditions and attempt the landing? The only two available planes had been disassembled and neither had ever flown in winter. The call for help reached the Governor and the request for an alternate route was approved. The Alaskan Railroad ferried the medicine more than 250 miles north to Nenana. But from that point on, the traveling was treacherous.

Just before Midnight, January 27, with the clock ticking, the serum and the survival of the town was transferred into the hands of rugged men and their teams of sled dogs who would race across some of the most brutal terrain and the harshest conditions that mother nature has to offer.

When the first musher left Nenana, the temperature reportedly hovered at 50 below zero. The volunteer mushers transferred this "Baton of Life" 18 times – until it reached the hands of Leonhard Seppala and his lead dog, Togo, considered by many to be the true heroes of the run. Together they covered the most hazardous stretch of the route, and carried the serum farther than any other team.

The twentieth and final transfer was made and, according to legend, the serum was nearly lost when a huge gust of wind toppled the sled of this final musher. The musher frantically dug the serum out of the snow with his bare hands, righted his sled and continued on. February 2 at 5:30 a.m., just five days and seven hours after leaving Nenana, the Norwegian Gunnar Kaasen and his lead dog Balto arrived on Front Street in Nome.

Salvation came through Courage, Skill, Teamwork, and Perseverance!

I would add to that – that salvation came to Nome because a group of people were willing to give – to sacrifice time out of their lives – and danger to their lives – for the sake of others.

Again, it's one of my life mottos and one of the legacy pieces that I want to leave as my mark on this earth – "He was a person that was a giver. He gave more than he received. He served others."

Can we end one week and start the next thinking about serving? Thinking about giving? Thinking about charity? Where can we add value this week?

"Life is lived best when it's lived for others."

Leaders need courage

Whether you're facing down 1100 miles of frozen tundra, a hostile business climate, or even a 360 peer review – courage is critical.

In every leader's day to day there are times when we would prefer not to be as courageous as we need to be. We don't always want to face the challenges in front of us, admit weaknesses (or areas needing improvement) in our leadership skill set, or stare down adversity raging like a storm off the Bering Sea – but if we are to continue to be the leader – it's part of our job description.

Great Leaders understand that without risk there can be no reward.

There will always be risk – in business, in life, in Iditarod – Leaders know, understand and process this accordingly. It's not that leaders lack fear – the fear is still there – it's what you do with the fear and how you process it that makes the difference. Courage isn't an absence of fear. It's doing what you're afraid to do. It's pushing past the fear to a place of internal power - to leave the last checkpoint and 'Mush off the Map!' Think about it – if there were no fear – you wouldn't need courage..

I heard of a leader that illustrated this point by handing his people 3 pieces of paper with choices on them.

1. 'Try and succeed'
   
2. 'Try and potentially fail'
   
3. 'Don't try and therefore never fail'
   

Leaders value action – and to 'not try' is not an option for us if we want to succeed. Courage is looking at all the options, regardless of how unpleasant, making the best decision at the time, and starting.

Remember: just because you start down a path – doesn't mean that you can't change – that you must stay on that path forever. If you start down a path and it's not working – see what needs to be changed and act on that, as well.

To increase your courage:

• Do the homework. There is no substitute for having as much of the known knowledge as possible. Leaders need to make informed decisions and that comes from having the right information – the good and the bad.
  
• Have open, honest discussions with rigorous debate about the appropriate course of action – when the mission or change is critical – this is not the time to hold back opinions – allow the debate to get spirited within the right boundaries.
  
• Gain wise counsel. Counsel can come from many sources – but needs to come from the right sources. You can take information from many – but limit counsel to the right people.
  
• Best Case / Worst Case. Play out both scenarios and weigh the cost of each – if you can live with the worst case – go for it!
  
• Act – you have to act – you have to move and look for the very next logical step and take it! Then look for the next step and take it – before long you'll be moving in the direction of success. Remember – it's much easier to turn a moving sled than one that is stopped and anchored!
  
• Evaluate – look back at this section in the RACE postings – evaluate at regular intervals and respond accordingly!
  

Fear will be present. As leaders we accept this. Criticism will always be present – we must accept this, too. If you weren't attempting something great – people would not have cause to criticize.

If I were beside you today – I would encourage you that you can succeed – walk it out step by step – checkpoint by checkpoint – you'll get there. And when you do – we'll have a drink in the lodge together and celebrate!

More on Moving ‘Anchors’ to ‘Racers’

Leadership and connectedness is a process. It doesn't happen in a day – it happens every day.

I've said it so many times, it's almost become cliché – "Leaders go for the heart, Managers go for the hands." And along with that, "We Lead People, we manage things"

Are there any among us that woke up this morning with the thought, "I hope my boss manages me today!" or "If only my boss or spouse would just manage me more!"

Doesn't that just raise the hair on the back of your neck? People, as a general rule, have no desire to be "managed". They are built with that internal desire to be free and independent… yes we have some level of a herd mentality – and yes, some people do need more hands on attention than others – but that does not mean that the majority want us to "Manage" them.

What I have found in people is that they welcome caring counsel, or advise from a trusted source – they hunger to be inspired and for someone to live a true model in front of them. In fact, they will gladly follow the 'lead' of someone that meets that criteria!

In the 2000 Goleman study, it was discovered that 70% of Employees perception of their working climate was tied to their leader's Emotional or Relational Intelligence – their leader's ability to connect with them relationally. If 70% of their job satisfaction and motivation is tied to our ability as leaders to connect with them - beyond just "managing them" - how profound of an impact can it make when we as leaders grow our relational skill set? Or determine to connect more authentically with our people? I believe that we would have far more racers than anchors!

People will follow – bigger, better, further, and faster – when we connect with their hearts instead of just trying to leverage their hands – when we aim for their heart – we get commitment – when we aim for the hands – the best we can hope for is compliance. How much more will our people 'race' when their hearts and hands are committed and connected to the mission?

So, how do you connect and lead your team?

"When it comes to team leadership, you lead your people one person at a time."

Each person's needs vary in some way or another – they will view life and business just a little different than each coworker – and the more diligent we are at connecting with them as individuals with their unique nuances– the more influence we will have with each – and "Leadership is Influence"

Consistently, I ask leaders what business they are in – and after they reply – I suggest that their response may be their product – but as leaders – we are all in the "People" business.

Maybe, just maybe – if we learn our people and connect with our people – they will be inspired to give more. How can they not be? They will be more connected and, relationally, when we are more connected we feel more obligated to not let our friends down.

Have a great weekend!

Unleashing the power of the team… Gaining employee engagement

As much as a leader is a 'commander' of people, he/she is, also, a servant of people. Engagement is not so much about commanding as it is connecting.

Bottom line(s): Valued, engaged people lead to Satisfied Customers and together, they will gladly and consistently contribute to a great BOTTOM LINE…

The Gallup Organization has consistently surveyed employees and businesses in the arena of engagement and the corresponding effects on the "Bottom Line". They divide employees into three areas that in 'Iditarod Leadership' are classified as: Racers, Loafers, and Anchors.

• Racers are between 25 and 30% of the average company. They are enthusiastic, committed, and run with passion and purpose. They feel deeply connected to your race! They consistently run at high performance levels and hunger to use their talents and strengths every day. They fuel creativity and move the sled forward.

• Loafers are roughly 50 to 55%. They are trotting through the days, content to 'go with the flow'. They are fairly neutral about the mission and the sled. They tend to take a "wait-and-see" attitude towards it all – sort of a, "if it looks like we may be in contention for something great – I may get excited – but until then I'll just punch the clock".

• Anchors can range from 15 to 20% on average. Sleds, normally, have anchors(or hooks) that keep the sled in place as you're lining up the team, but these folks are Anchors that actively dig in their heals as the rest of the team attempts to run. They, literally, drain the team of its energy and actively seek to spread their 'Rabid" discontent.

Gallup estimates that the 'Bottom Line' effect of 'Anchors' in 2006 cost the US economy about $328 Billion in lost productivity and the corresponding ripple effects.

So, how can we develop a team full of 'Racers' and 'Unleash the power of the team…'? Here are a few ideas to implement in your kennel for some immediate effects:

• Clarity expectations – when dogs or people are unsure of their roles and expectations – they cannot race with their full strength. Learn to line out in simple language exactly what you want them to 'DO' and they will run faster.
  
• Grow, Equip and Empower – Use training runs and growth exercises to teach them what they need to know , to stretch and grow them, and to equip them for the journey. When the time comes – set them free to run. The best days in a sled dogs life are when the musher says, "Hike" and takes away all hindrances to their running!
  
• Leverage their Strengths – put them in the right spot on the team – where their personality and strengths will fit perfectly. When they are placed well – they will run well.
  
• Be liberal with treats and 'Ataboys'. Is there anyone among us that won't pull harder when we know our efforts will be recognized or rewarded by our leader?
  
• Connect on a personal level with them AND help them connect with the mission of the race – give them your heart and go for theirs. Once you know their heart, you'll be able to see where their heart aligns with the overall mission and you'll be able to help them connect and run with purpose.
  
• Excellence and Contribution. We all want to know we are a part of something that is excellent – something of quality –AND that we have a valued contribution to that end. Set the standard for excellence on your team and when they contribute ideas – affirm their valuable input and seek to implement where possible. It will increase their self esteem and create bold and daring team members that pull voraciously.
  

As we serve, value, equip, and empower our teams – we will be astonished at the power that is unleashed and stretched as leaders as the sled starts to reach top speed!

Production and the bottom lines…

As I said yesterday, there has to be a bottom line. Production is a basis for trust and respect. Trust and respect are the basis for influence – and Leadership IS Influence.

Without producing the goods or delivering the desired results our leadership won't last for long. Of all the roles that we discussed last week, the leader's greatest role – the one that set him or her apart – is producer. The traditional bottom line is profitability. At the end of the day, does your dream or business have a 'Net Income'? This is the, absolute, business bottom line and what I refer to as the 1^st bottom line. Will we be able to keep our doors open tomorrow?

Again, using the race as a model… at the end of the race - the mushers get a prize. This prize comes from a number of sources, including entrance fees, sponsors, etc. As the prize has increased, the level of competition has grown and the end result (the bottom line) is that mushers could now run this race as something that could produce income – not just a hobby. So the race needs sponsors and without fans, there are no sponsors.

Since my mind is, usually, digging deeper, I'm tying the metaphor to business and thinking… fans and sponsors are their 'Customers". In the race and in business, 'Satisfied Customers' are critical. This has to be a constant question, "Do we have satisfied customers?" If we don't have satisfied customers – we don't have revenue – if we don't have revenue we can't have net income! This becomes the 2^nd bottom line AND is directly tied to the success of the 1^st bottom line.

Now I'm left with, "We have customers. How are we going to deliver the desired results and keep them satisfied?"

The answer? Our people, our 'Team'.

We can't run the race alone and if we tried, I doubt anyone would wait around for us to attempt an 1100 mile foot race. Bottom line – this business race and your dream should be too big for you to attempt on your own! AND we can't lose sight of a profound truth:

"How you treat your people… Is how they will treat your Customers and take care of their orders"

Treat your people poorly and they will lack the motivation and desire to treat your customers any different. Their mindset will be, "they don't value me – why should I value you?" Further, if they are not valued or don't feel connected to a higher purpose in their journey, "Are they going to pull the sled with all their strength? Or enough to cover the bare minimum?" Bottom line # 3: we need valued, engaged team members, pulling with all of their heart and strength if we are going to satisfy our customers AND reach our 'Burled Arch'.

Whether you want to be influential within your company or impactful within your industry, unless you deliver the goods on a consistent basis – your impact will only go so far. The purpose for Iditarod Leadership and the reason for why I write and speak is to help you increase your impact – to help you produce the desired result AND to communicate that it doesn't have to come at the expense of relationship with our people and satisfied customers are critical.

Bottom line(s): Valued, engaged people lead to Satisfied Customers and together, they will gladly and consistently contribute to a great BOTTOM LINE…

 

The bottom line is that there are multiple bottom lines

People run the race for different reasons. Some, initially, become interested in the race for the adventure and the challenge – sort of the ‘man (or woman) and beasts versus the wild’. The adrenaline of: “I could die or suffer extreme harm” has an incredible allure over the mundane of cubicles, time clocks and ‘TPS’ reports.

There are any number of analogies that I could draw here in reference to life and business: becoming an entrepreneur, leaving corporate life for the thrill of starting your own business, leaving the ‘rank and file’ to become a leader in your organization, or even living your hobby or dream outside of work. Whatever the analogy, there comes a time when we must face the ‘bottom line’.

For the past couple of weeks, I worked with a great group of guys with a dream and an incredible opportunity. This dream and opportunity is right in line with their passion to reach people and develop a great business that provides them with income. In the process, if they make it…. they could achieve social recognition and a degree of status among their peers and business leaders in their country. In the midst of it all, my continued council was, “Great! But it won’t happen on its own. You have to have a detailed plan. You have to focus on the bottom line. The status or success you will achieve is more of a by-product of a great business plan that is executed with diligence and purpose!”

And if I could say that to you… If we could meet in a coffee shop – somewhere around the world – or sit with legs folded and ‘break bread’ and talk as friends – my council would be the same. “Go for it! Live your dreams! I believe in you!” and then I would precede to (as a loving friend) ‘hammer’ on you about your business plan and all of the necessary things in order for you to succeed. I would tell you that it doesn’t all have to be lined out in perfection and down to every ‘i’ dotted and every ‘t’ crossed when you start. In fact, if you wait until everything is perfect – chances are – you will never start. However, if the dream is going to be realized – there has to be a ‘bottom line’.

For as long as I can remember, this has been drilled into me – after all – my degree is in Accounting. I can still hear the mantra being chanted, “Focus on the bottom line. Focus on the bottom line. Wall Street only focuses on the bottom line.”

Then… I came to a new understanding of what the bottom line means and it is part of the entire ‘Iditarod Leadership’ theme.

Think about the actual race. It has many components but I would like us to focus on the big picture: The race has competitors, fans and sponsors. In order to keep the race going – all 3 must be satisfied. We and our teams must be willing to be ‘in the race’, the fans have to enjoy the experience and the competition, and the sponsors need to have a return for their investment.

The bottom line… and the discussion for this week…. is that in the race AND in business … the BOTTOM LINE is that there are three bottom lines.

Stay in touch this week and next, we will unpack this powerful concept.

The ‘Adventure’ of Indonesia

As many of you know, our 'Leadership Adventure' took us to Indonesia over the past 10 days or so, with a stop in California on the way to see my son, Zach, who is at Camp Pendleton. The word 'Adventure' is appropriate. Yesterday felt like I had been through quite a ride. It seems, at times, that everything only catches up to us when we finally stop or slow down!

It, usually, takes me a couple of days to shake off international travel and return to my routine stateside – but my heart is continually pulled back toward the blog and my connection with you that have chosen to join me on this adventure. I am a bit driven to share leadership principles every day and have a 'destiny' to add value to people Every Day – which leads me to shake it off and get back to posting blogs!! Thanks for your patience during the travel.

There are a number of blogs that are intense in my heart from the trip – adding to the thread started on the many roles we play as leaders, unpacking some leadership and life questions from discussions with Zach, and talking about a burning topic of the 'bottom line' of business.

However, I thought we could jump back in with just talking about the journey and maybe connecting on a more personal level, for today.

We started in California with a blaze of activity with Zach over July 4^th and the pride of having two sons serving their country during that patriotic weekend.

We expected to see the beauty of California, connect with Zach, ship a care package to his brother and then enjoy the beauty of California before heading out to business in Indonesia.

We received a call during that time that was a reminder that serving isn't for the weak and the fast realization that having sons serve the country meant their lives are, truly, on the line every day. Our oldest son, Josh, had come under attack and there were casualties in their unit. We went from being thankful that he made it – to empathetic and compassionate for the families that lost their sons.

Conversations about life, happiness, meaning, etc. ensued and all of the questions about what is true and lasting in this world (and the next) - all of the topics that transcend leadership of business into leadership in life and personal courage. (I know life isn't always easy and I am thankful, daily, for the gift of each day with those that are close to me. We have experienced loss of loved ones in the past year or so and know that many of you are facing your own trials and pains and our hearts are with you!)

From there – we had a few days to enjoy La Jolla and the beautiful coast, caught the flight, connected through Hong Kong and landed in Jakarta. Our main seminar was scheduled for the Ritz and the smaller subsequent meeting for the JW Marriott.

Long story short, there were a number of circumstances that transpired that caused us to change our accommodations just a couple of days before suicide bombers (that were staying one floor up from us) walked into the restaurant during breakfast and carried out their deadly attacks - one at the JW and one at the Ritz. We are fortunate to be alive… there are 5-6 different reasons why we should have been there that morning and only providence that we were not.

We spent the next several days in the home of a business partner, not knowing when or if the next attack would hit, while working to wrap up the training certifications that we had committed to complete. It was a couple of stressful days with long hours followed by 30+ hours of flying time coming home – not exactly the best representation for my wife's first time to accompany me on business!

Thanks so much for your prayers and support of me and my family!

I believe the people of Indonesia will overcome the evil that seeks to do it (and others) harm. The people I met were great – with a great hunger for leadership and excellence. We wish them all the best and will be back with them for more!

Long post for the first one back – if you want more on the bombings here's a link.

http://www.thejakartapost.com/channel/headlines

The post for tomorrow or later today is on the triple bottom line – one of my favorite discussions!!! Thanks for allowing me to add value to your leadership growth!

The Roles of a Leader

The commitment to blog daily (weekdays) gets a little challenging when traveling (lol). I try to sleep and reset the body clock as fast as possible but it does not always work. For the next couple of weeks I will be in Indonesia training leaders for Giant Impact. Just over 2 days on the ground and it feels like we have been here for a week. We landed and spent the rest of Saturday in Jakarta and then Sunday afternoon and part of Monday in Bandung and then back to Jakarta. Beautiful places and great conversations with the partners of Imperium – watch for pics on facebook or twitpics…

My heart from last week (talking about team health), the 25+ hours of flying, and the conversations so far here is dwelling on the roles that we play as leaders. When talking about team health – there are many times that we are a team member (responsible for our own results) and then for the team we are coach, therapists, career counselor, strategist, visionary, motivator, teacher, mentor… and the list goes on. Balancing these roles can prove to be challenging and, at the same time, rewarding. At the base of it all, the foundation of our leadership is our character or integrity. I am convinced, now more than ever, that what our teams need is leaders that are inspirations to follow - leaders worthy of the people following.

On the trail to Nome and our 'Burled Arch', somewhere along the trail of 1100+ miles of our 'adventure' we are bound to meet ourselves. When that occurs, will we like what we find? We come face to face with who we are – not who we wish we were; who we ARE – not whom we tell others we are or our 'front'.

The dogs don't care much about pretense – they want to know that you are the real thing. The trail? It only allows those to pass after they have looked inside and come face to face with 'the man (or woman) in the mirror'. Today, can we stop and look in the mirror? Can we own the desire and make the tough choices that qualify our leadership as integrous?

Closing my thoughts today with a few poignant Fuller-isms and some I've picked up along the way:

"The character of a person is not made during tough times, it's revealed."

"We are all like sponges – what is truly in us when we are squeezed WILL come out."

"Respect is earned on difficult ground" (John C Maxwell)

"Character is easier kept than reclaimed"

And from a movie on the plane ride to Indonesia: "Sometimes a man can meet his own Destiny on a road he took to avoid it."

Relational Team Health

Fewer things can break the will of a team to run more than relational dysfunction. Small problems that should be easily overcome or dismissed become impassible barriers and thin, fractured ice threatening the team's survival with every step.

Forget the competition – We're too busy fighting each other!

As the leader of the team, it is our responsibility to monitor their Relational Health, just as much as their physical health or operational results. Why? Because if it has not impacted operational results, it soon will. As leaders, we are in the people business and people can be messy. That's not meant to come across in a derogatory way – it just is. People have bad days or even bad weeks. If we are honest, WE have bad days/weeks. We won't hire or keep people that are overtly dysfunctional, but that's not always clear on the front end. When dysfunction manifests, it's our responsibility to address it for the sake of mental / emotional / psychological health of the entire team AND the sake of the mission.

Relational health can be broken down to the individual and the team as a unit. At times, we will need keen observation skills to detect any issues and at other times you wouldn't be able to miss them if you tried.

The team's relational health is reflected in their ability to (pick your favorite buzz word): Communicate, cooperate, collaborate, synergize, etc. It affects every aspect of the team, in that it is made up of the team's will to work with each other.

The term I use for Relational Health (or Relational Intelligence) is EQ. EQ is one of several terms that are used to describe this area of personal and vocational effectiveness. Just as IQ stands for Intellectual Quotient, EQ stand for Emotional Quotient.

EQ can be broken down into four areas: Self Awareness, Self Leadership, Social Awareness, and Relational Leadership.

In any relationship, our question sequence should be about self first, then the relationship. Am I AWARE of what's going on with me (what I'm thinking or feeling) that may be adversely affecting the situation? Can I, then, lead myself or 'manage' myself to a better place of connectivity? From personal leadership, then we should develop the skill to be able to recognize what is going on with our coworkers, beyond just the surface issues, and finally, lead the relationship in the best direction.

Easily said – not always easily done!

The roots of most relational dysfunction can be traced down to a number of issues: perspectives (Sunglasses), communication, trust and offenses. Somebody says or does something that is a trigger for someone else and the entire team can break away and run down false trails in an instant!

As we start in this area, begin to watch for body language and team dynamics. When you are conducting a meeting or just watching casual interaction within the team – be aware of peoples' body language. If someone starts to close off because of an offense – stop the process and start asking about their view of what just happened. Set the rules and start talking up the fact that you (as a team) need incredible Relational Health – if you are going to pull off your audacious goal – your "Burled Arch".

Just start bringing things to their attention and talking about relational harmony, ask their views and take their feedback into consideration.

Functional relationships in business are no different than functional personal relationships. You don't get to pick your birth family and, within some latitude, your people may not feel like they have a tremendous amount of control when it comes to their work cohorts, either. Working on this area and talking about it – can influence their feelings of power AND their commitment to the team as a unit!

***

I am in California this week, having spent time with my son who is in SOI at Camp Pendleton. We are working on some business opportunities here and then flying for a 2 week stay in Indonesia for Leadership sessions with companies there. Please keep us in your thoughts as we travel and we'll twitter, FB, and Blog about our Leadership adventures. Stay tuned!

Team Health is rarely on accident

The formula for a great team is easy – be a great leader – have great people, a great plan, and great execution – sounds easy, right? Not so much….

We all make hiring mis-steps, we add team members that have great potential but they just don't pan out, team members will (from time to time) have personal or interpersonal issues, and sometimes the reasons are difficult to diagnose. Leading to the realization that Team health, like personal health is rarely on accident. It is a matter and a make of up many choices along the way that add up to the sum of the whole. Team Health and productivity is from purposeful, consistent, and intentional diligence.

Continuing from earlier this week…. We have a team that doesn't perform to expected levels, I have looked at my leadership areas and worked to correct any short falls there, and my team is still not producing expected results – where do I go from here?

From here, means that we look at the two parts of the team – the team as an entity, and the individuals that make up the team.

One of my consistent 'ISMs' is,

"To lead a team, you lead them one by one – beginning with you"

Earlier in the week we have dealt with the back part of that statement – 'beginning with you' – now we transition to the middle – we lead our team – ONE person at a time.

It's difficult to say which we look at first – because it's more of a both/and scenario – we look at our team and the dynamics of how they interact and operate AS A TEAM - but that is almost impossible to separate from looking at the individual players on the team and how they fit into the mix. Are they adding the right value? Running in their position right? Pulling their weight? Contributing to team synergy or detracting from it?

For the existing talent my questions are more along the line of: "Skill and Will". Does this player have the skills need for the position or role that I need them to play? Do they have the WILL to succeed in their role and with the team? (The right attitude)

The skill part is capacity – can they do what needs to be done in order to perform at the needed level. Will comes into commitment – "Will they do what needs to be done?"

Start with evaluating individual performance – in other words, "Let's look at what we can measure and put our hands on, first."

Dialing down on individual performance means metrics and measurements. Here are the actions that we are going to measure your performance on - and here is how we are going to measure those. Throw in timing (for good measure) and they have the clarity on when, what, and the how. Short of that and they may not have the needed tools or clarity from you.

For today, invest a little time on clarity of desired performance and if you don't have any, yet, developing an appropriate set of performance metrics. Boil this down to the clarity of, "What do I want you to do daily?" Let the person know you'll be monitoring performance (daily for a while). Follow through! How can we expect our people to be – what we are not.

Team Health always starts with the Team’s Leadership, pt2

Yesterday we started the conversation about the Leader looking at himself or herself first, when it comes to analyzing team performance. Knowing that the team is usually a reflection of the Leader can be both sobering and affirming. Some additional questions to ask yourself about any potential negative or limiting effects that could be translating into less than desirable results are:

Is my team lacking direction? For a team to run at top speed, they will need clarity. Most of us would be, completely, unwilling to run at full speed while in total darkness and our teams are no exceptions. At times, stopping the team, increasing clarity, and establishing direction can tremendously boost speed and performance.

Have I over-driven my team? Even high performing teams are going to need a break. Pushing your team past the point of exhaustion too often can result in irreversible damage to physical stamina and mental focus. Knowing the right time to take a break is a mixture of intimately knowing both the team and the trail.

Knowing the team will clue you into them. Are they exhausted or just bored? Are they distracted? Does something have them spooked? Knowing the team will keep you from misinterpreting their energy or mental state.

Knowing the trail / terrain gives you valuable insight into where to push through and where to stop and rest. For instance, you may want to ask your team to continue on through a known difficult section before resting – that way when they are rested and fresh – they can run the next (easier) section with more energy and faster performance times. Again, knowing your team – gives you the insight to know if they prefer to push on through this area or prefer to be fresh and which choice will maximize productivity.

Is the sled overly burdensome? A team carrying twice the weight is unlikely to be the fastest. Saddle your team with a high degree of bureaucracy, regulation, emotional baggage, or wearisome corporate policies and watch the life drain from them. One of our greatest gifts that we can give to the team is to let them run with as little restriction as possible. The vast majority of players on the team want to run, they want to do the right thing and achieve the right results. Continuing to throw hurdles and obstacles in front of them will make the race more like a steeplechase than trail race! Look for ways to get out of your people's way and let them run!!!

Lastly, and perhaps most importantly:

Is the Team's attitude a reflection of mine? There is a very pointed dialog in the movie Remember the Titans, when one of the football players pushes back on the captain by saying, "Attitude reflects Leadership, Captain.

As leaders, our attitude and even our body language can transmit to the team. The "vibe" they get from us can either be contagious (if it's good) or infectious (if it's bad). Our team is, almost always, a reflection of our stress level, our relational interaction, and our attitude. Nothing can poison the team's will to run like a leader with a poor attitude or negative mind set.

As I've said before, none of our talks on how to make the team's performance better is meant to knock you down or depress you. My heart is to help call some of these things to your attention – so that you become response-able. Your team's performance is within your realm to inspire and improve! Goodness knows, I've not always been as good of a leader as I am today – and there are days that I still drop the ball for my team – but that's leadership – we are human – we're not going to get it right every time.

That's why, "Great Leader's strive for Excellence, not Perfection!"

Team Health always starts with the Team’s Leadership

If, as my mentor John C Maxwell quotes, "Everything rises and falls on Leadership" then I have to accept that wherever the team's health is today can be attributed to leadership decisions of the past and their health tomorrow rests on the leadership decisions of today. So my first question when attempting to diagnose the reason behind a team's health (or performance) issue is, "Am I the problem?"

We'll mush through part one of the questions that I take in the discovery process today and cover the second part tomorrow:

Is there something that my team has needed that I have not provided?

This can be detailed into many different sub-categories such as financial provision, training, empowerment, opportunity to provide feedback, and even to my interpersonal responsibilities of affirmation and connectivity. So I walk down more detailed questions:

Have I built my team strategically? Teams that are built with purpose and players that are placed with purpose (with the insight of interpersonal team dynamics) are much less likely to fight 'Team Health' issues. Creating a team full of superstar, individual performers may prove to be no match for a good, cohesive team. The superstars may spend so much time fighting each other or fighting for the limelight that they fail to remember the mission and the PURPOSE behind the race.

Have I trained my team for the journey? A rag-tag, undisciplined, untrained team usually only wins in fairytales and children's movies. Sled Dog teams are trained canine athletes – that are trained just like any other top tier athlete in the world. If they have not been trained for the situation – we cannot expect them to perform at the professional level. One of my favorite sayings is, "Amateurs practice until they get it right, professional practice until they can't get it wrong!"

Have I invested the time to create team synergy and buy-in? We can't, always, operate a team that we have a long and purposeful relationship with but, over a period of time, we can't neglect the immensely important factor of relationship and buy-in. When they buy-in to you and when they buy into each other – they buy into the race and will run with greater purpose, greater commitment. We'll unpack more on Buy-in in a latter blog.

Have I empowered my team? Nothing frustrates and de-motivates a team of highly trained, highly capable athletes more than an insecure leader that either tight-reigns the team or won't set them free to run with the liberating communiqué of, "Hike!"

Have I resourced my team? The team is going to need to eat – to feed on the right fuel physically, mentally, emotionally and they are going to need the right equipment. Malnourished dogs can't run – and it they don't have the right footwear or outerwear they are going to suffer injury or hypothermia and the race will be over!

Questions can be painful – but they can also be insightful and beneficial to leading us to a higher level of performance and achievement!

Here's to team health – that starts with looking at us, as leaders, first!

Team Health

Overcoming obstacles and facing down the storms is mission critical for successful teams. However, not all teams are successful and many are downright sickly. It is one of the musher's top priorities to create and maintain a healthy team.

In Chapter 6 of IDITAROD LEADERSHIP, there is a female, professional musher(Lizzie) that is giving instruction to the novice mushers and going through a time of Q&A. The exchange picks up with Lizzie answering a question around team performance. She responds:

“Adjustments with me and/or my plan are going to relate to conditions on the trail such as bad weather, is the trail icy or snow covered, or even is there a lack of snow. In recent years, we’ve had a lack of snow in some parts of the trail. The condition of the team, also, impacts the strategy. Some dogs might be fighting illness, do I need to drop them? Are there dogs not pulling their weight or who are causing problems with the other dog? Is another competitor pushing me? If you have any of these conditions and you don’t evolve your plan of action, you won’t win. Pure and simple. In some cases, you may not even finish the race.

Now my interest was piqued(Michael thought) and so he asked, “So, wait a minute. Is it hard for you to drop a dog?”

Lizzie replied, “Make no mistake about it, I love my dogs. I’m committed to my team. But if a dog’s not performing or it’s in their best interest health-wise to drop them, I have to drop them. I’m not willing to sacrifice the rest of the team, or the race, for one dog. I have to make the hard decisions and it’s just a part of mushing.”

This exchange leads the discussion to Team health and it’s many different areas. Is it the team? Is it players within the team? Is it team dynamics? Does it relate to the Mental, Physical, or operational components of the team?

If your team pulled into a checkpoint and were, immediately, evaluated for their health – where would the negative reports come from? What would be positive?

Underperforming teams come in many shapes and sizes. If your team falls into this category – are you aware of the why? It may be easy to see the symptoms, easy to look at the numbers and tell the team they are not measuring up, but do we know why?

The position of the Musher (being behind the team) is an incredible place to monitor the health of the team. From their vantage point they should be able to discern, not only the effect, but the cause. Discernment becomes a key leadership competency.

Is the team lazy? Are the mentally fatigued? Are they undertrained or improperly trained to handle the conditions of the race you're in today? Is the team in complete disarray? Are they resistant to your leadership? Or are they simply bored and lack purposeful motivation.

I would like you take some time to just consider you team - have you thought about their health? I know (or at least hope) you've looked at the performance numbers, but if the performance numbers are not where they are supposed to be – how do we trail back to the causes of the less than desired results?

This week we unpack the health of the team and work to increase your skills of discernment, care taker, veterinarian, and finally, performance coach. It's going to be a great week.

The Psychological Power of overcoming

Whatever you yield to – is what you give power to… Yield to the obstacle or difficult situation and you give power to it – stare it down and overcome it and the power becomes yours – not just for the day – but for your entire future – it is a stake in the ground that you will continuously point back to and say – on such and such date – in this situation – I faced down the giant and I won.

Every situation builds on the previous. Failure and defeat can lead to more of the same – every time you give in – you shrink – every time you endure or conquer – you grow!

In the historical Chronicles of the leaders of Israel, as well as children folklore – they tell the story of David. You have probably heard the tale of David killing Goliath. This Teen had the courage to take on someone purported to be towering over all other men in the Israeli Army – and was not even being confronted by the King. What gave David the courage to confront this enemy?

David was a mere shepherd boy – a kid who watched his family's sheep. What did he know about being a warrior?

What he knew – was how he grew!

While watching the sheep – a lion approached the herd to kill and eat a sheep. David confronted the situation, grabbed his sling, put in a rock and flung it directly at the Lion. The rock hit the target and the Lion was defeated. At another point – a bear attacks in a similar manner and David – growing from the situation of overcoming the Lion – leaned on that victory and defeated this Bear. So when faced with this Giant (Goliath) – David had grown to the point of being able to point back to previous (lesser) successes and say with all confidence – I defeated the Lion, I defeated the Bear – this is just another similar adversary – that will fall to the ground. And just like what we talked about earlier this week – he faced the storm. In fact, the records say that he ran TOWARD Goliath.

The rest (as Paul Harvey would say) is history…

Step by step – one obstacle at a time – feed your inner power – feed your inner energy and face down the obstacles and enemies.

What gave Lance Mackey (3 time Iditarod winner) the courage to overcome his obstacles? What gave Dee Dee Jonrowe courage? What gave Lance Armstrong power? They overcame disease and the rest could seem like child's play.

What do you need to face? What can we help you face? You need to overcome this obstacle – face down this enemy – because it's not just an enemy of your path – your race – your day –it's an enemy of your future – an enemy of your soul!

Fight the good fight – stay in the battle – kick this obstacle in the teeth – and stand with those that have slain Giants in the process!

Turning on the light

When you're running the race and darkness has closed in around your sled – you can stay on the sled and worry about the darkness, think about the darkness, talk about the darkness – or you can turn on the light!

When running the race at night, mushers will turn on their headlamp. It allows them to see things they would not otherwise see AND allows others on the trail to know they are there. In business, part of moving from fear to persevere is to move things from the unknown to the known. This process is "turning on the light" where there are only shadows and where fear or discouragement is running high.

When fear and uncertainty grip us, we need to move as quickly as possible to unraveling the mystery and revealing the trail conditions. As leaders, this process is rarely pleasant, but it's our sled, our team and our responsibility.

When moving to turn the light on a "dark situation" pull over to a checkpoint or create a camp site and walk through the following:

Look for the 'You are here' circle on the map.

Assemble the team and list out all knowns on a white board. This is probably not the time for the timid to hold their peace. From a personality stand point, those with the greatest knowledge through analysis are, also, usually introverted and may dislike confrontation. This means that you are going to need to give them permission to be rigorously honest and work to draw the information from them. Use communication that lets them know that their honesty and communication are vital to save the team from harm and they are not hurting the team – but may be providing life-saving information.

Don't "Beat the dogs"

Reacting negatively or exploding on the team as they are giving you vital but unpleasant information will only serve to hurt you long term. The rest of the team will certainly withhold their opinions and the next time there is negative information they will let you take the hit, instead of being beaten for trying to help you.

List out the trail choices.

With the help of your team, run through all the possible scenarios (trails), follow each to their natural conclusions, consider best and worst case.

MUSH!

Pick the best trail, given the existing knowledge and start running. If you stay put, you'll freeze to death. If you choose a wrong path, but you start soon enough, you will discover the error and make the needed correction! And if you get it right – you've saved valuable time and options. Problems rarely work themselves out and delaying decisions only limits the options. Great leaders make decisions timely and change them quickly if need be. Mediocre leaders change their decisions so slowly, they reduce their probability for success.

OWN the choice.

You are responsible for your life and your team. What that means is that you are Response-able. You are Able to Respond to whatever the situation is and work to yield the best results possible. When I say you're responsible – I'm not discussing whose FAULT the situation is – only that you have the power, the ability to respond in that situation to work and move to the best possible outcome!

Be open, honest, collaborative, and empowered. When the storms hit (when, not if) we have more safety in numbers…As the Proverb goes, ".. in the counsel of many, a ruler's throne is made secure"

Turn on the light! You are Response-Able!

Owning the right perspectives on problems and obstacles

No one can affect your thoughts on a situation or event, unless you let them…

So now we are to the "How?" question. If the problems and obstacles are there to help separate the tenacious competitors from the casual competitors, how do we own the right mindset?

1. Check the mindset

When you are in the middle of a battle, pause and ask yourself "what am I thinking about this situation?". It seems silly to ask you to do this – but the purpose of the exercise is to give you momentary pause to "check your thoughts". It will interrupt your thinking about the situation and allow you to think about your thinking. What am I thinking? Are they the right thoughts?

2. Keep the sled light

Keeping the sled "light" means I don't pile other events on my sled. The times that I have the most trouble with my "mental game" is when I find myself connecting unrelated events. I have an obstacle or fail to meet an intended result and I, immediately, start to fight thoughts that tie every other failure in my life to this situation. This situation is THIS situation. If the thoughts attempt to spiral you into rehearsing of all previous failures and short comings, try to arrest the process – STOP THE RUN AWAY SLED!!!!

IF (and it's a big if) you discover through looking at the situation that there are some bad patterns or choices that do connect some dots – then work to identify the pattern. That's it – Identify the pattern and work to correct that pattern. Your "lot in life" is not to ALWAYS be the losing sled. Start owning the mindset that you can win – even if you've never won before – there is always a first!

3. Evolve

If you remember, the Evolve stage is where we look at the lessons learned, understand the needed course corrections and immediately work to implement the changes into our daily running. John C Maxwell has an incredible book called Failing Forward and it is, absolutely, recommended reading. One of the take-aways from this book is that when people fail – they usually forget the lesson that they should have learned and hold onto the emotional pain of the failure. He goes on to counsel that we should forget the emotional hit from the failure and work to remember what the failure will teach us. This has led to an internal mantra for me that echoes – "Learn the lesson – forget the pain"

This doesn't mean that we don't remember the hit – we just don't allow it to become emotional baggage that weighs us down – remember point # 2 – keep the sled light! I am a firm believer in pain being one of the chief teachers in life – we want to avoid the pain – so we don't do whatever action caused us the pain last time. It doesn't mean we choose not to race again – it means we improve – we get better and we try not to make the same mistake twice.

4. The Champion's mindset

What would the top competitors be thinking in this same situation? In order to change the outcome – we have to change our action. In order to change our actions – we have to change our thoughts and beliefs.

Consistently asking yourself, "What would the best leaders think and do in this situation?" can lead you to an elevated thinking, action and outcome.

But the first step is to take ownership of this area (your thoughts are your thoughts) and a thought cannot be removed – it can only be replaced with another thought. Whether that thought is good or whether that thought is self-defeating is up to you.

Choose with me to "Own" the winning mindset today!