#40 Our Collective Consciousness

Last week I caught a snippet of a television show on which Deeprok Chopra was appearing. Deeprok Chopra is a trained Indian medical doctor who is also a writer and speaker on a myriad of topics including the mind-body connection.  He was discussing "collective consciousness"*.  It is a perfect descriptor for what is going on all around us.


Chopra believes that "the world is as we are". He further states all of the social and economic injustice, environmental degradation, and the dysfunction of our politics and institutions are all a reflection of our collective consciousness.  We as a society project our mores onto everything we do.  Thus we see examples of these norms in the television shows that we watch, the bickering and fighting we witness daily by our politicians -- everything is about who is going to win, not what is good for us as a whole or what is good for this country.  And I believe he is right on.


I want to provide two very subtle examples of this ME vs. WE collective consciousness. Both are holiday commercials.  The first one is a Kohl's advertisement for Black Friday.  It shows a happy, singing young woman in a crowd outside of Kohl's waiting for the store to open.  When the door opens she puts her hand up to "stop" an older woman from entering before her.  She walks in, grabs a cart, continues merrily along  putting things into her cart -- she evens grabs something out of someone's else's cart -- to that person's stunned amazement.  She breezes through her shopping and checks out.  The Kohl's shopping experience has been a piece of cake.


The second one is an Audi commercial.  The parents watch as their son drives up to their house for a holiday visit in a very spiffy new Audi.  As he walks through a different door into the house, he calls out to his parents that he is home.  Meanwhile the parents book out the front door and decide to take a "joy" ride in his car - thus leaving him there looking bewildered. 

Are these commercials cute and funny?  I think not -- but I believe that Kohl's and Audi thought so.... Do I really want to see some self centered young woman thinking that she can just disrespect others and take what she wants?  And those parents, do I really want to know that they are so self centered that they would rather go drive a car than greet their son? Which makes me ask again, what is it that we collectively care about? 

Our collective consciousness has allowed for these very self-centered kinds of commercials -- it is the Me vs. WE mentality, which has created a lot of chaos and instability in our country.  The good news is that according to Chopra there is an opportunity to change our collective consciousness and it all starts with each and every one of us.  

To be continued in the new year -- but for now -- HAPPY NEW YEAR'S!!!!

* A term coined by the French sociologist Émile Durkheim (1858–1917) to refer to the shared beliefs and moral attitudes which operate as a unifying force within society.

#39 Anyway....thoughts this Holiday Season

A couple of weeks ago someone asked my why I was writing this blog.  I told her that I had a lot to say about a variety of  things.  By the look on her face I could tell she was probably thinking something like the following:  (1) you are retired, (2) why do you care, (3) what if nobody reads them, and (4) why waste your time?  If she had asked me further about those thoughts, my answer to her would have been that even if very few people read them, I HAVE to write them anyway -- it is about me getting my voice out into the universe, just in case someone IS reading and needs to hear what I have to say.

And as the universe will have it -- a couple days later, I came across this poem while I was cleaning out my office.  It spoke to me and I hope it speaks to you.  

                                                Anyway

People are unreasonable, illogical, and self-centered.

                        Love them anyway.

If you do good, people may accuse you of selfish motives.

                        Do good anyway.

If you are successful, you may win false friends

                        And true enemies.

                        Succeed anyway.

Honesty and transparency make you vulnerable.

                        Be honest and transparent anyway.

What you spend year’s building may be destroyed overnight,

                        Build anyway.

People who really want help may attack you if you help them.

                        Help them anyway.

Give the world the best you have and you may get hurt.

                        Give the world your best anyway.

  

                                                            -- Author Unknown

My wish for you this holiday season is to be your best, give your best to your friends and family (and I am not talking monetary things) and give the best of yourself to you -- help others, appreciate all the riches you have, be happy and have a joy filled time!

Happy Holidays!!

#38 Freedom of Speech -- Appreciation for the First Amendment

Yesterday was the 220th anniversary of the First Amendment -- guaranteeing the right of free speech.  How better  for us to understand that we are free than to be able to speak to our concerns, and voice our opinions or thoughts.  It is our right to contribute to our governance, without interference, and to speak out about the good and the bad.

The citizens of Middle Eastern countries have been fighting and dying to gain these rights -- the Arab Spring has been upon us for a while.  But we in the United States have had this right since the early formation of this nation --- but have we appreciated that right?  As I believe the citizens from the deep south would say -- up until the last 40-50 years it has all just been lip service.

I am beginning to believe that freedom of speech in most of our institutions, governmental or otherwise, is just that -- lip service.  One could ask themselves, why would you pay top leaders within  governmental institutions to just be "yes" men, cronies, if you will, with the top boss.  And I guess if I were one of those "cronies" I would have to say "why not?"  I am getting paid well to do practically nothing as long as I go along with everything that the boss wants.  It is really no skin off of my nose...but is that really true?

The older I get the more I understand each time we give up something of ourselves, we begin to lose who we are -- something is taken away from our person.  At first it seems so innocent, but after a while, all of us who have done varying degrees of giving in, begin to be so far removed from ourselves we don't know who we are any more.  It is like being in fog for so long (years) and then suddenly the fog lifts and you look in the mirror and don't recognize yourself anymore.

Another thing that that I have figured out over the years is that when you have something -- something as seemingly simple of being able to voice an opinion, you do not appreciate it -- you take it for granted.  But when you lose it, you miss it more that anything.  You always want what you don't have.  It's funny how life is that way.

Let's not take our First Amendment right for granted -- take an assessment -- are you really free to voice your opinion?  Do you get talked down to, talked over, or outright dismissed?  If you do -- and we all do from time to time -- maybe it's time to think about that First Amendment and decide if it is worth fighting for -- maybe it is the most important thing to fight for -- the you in you depends upon it.

#37 Leadership Redux

Let's face it folks -- we have a leadership deficient -- I am not sure we would recognize a real leader if we met one -- we would think they were an alien creature.  But just to refresh all of our collective memories, I offer the following poem -- Enjoy!

On Leadership


Leadership is an invisible strand
As mysterious as it is powerful.  It pulls and it bonds.
It is a catalyst that creates unity out of disorder.
Yet it defies definition.  No combination
of talents can guarantee it.  No process or training
can create it where the spark does not exist.

The qualities of leadership are universal:
They are found in the poor and the rich, the humble
and the proud, the common man, and the brilliant
thinker; they are qualities that suggest paradox
rather than pattern.  But wherever they are found
leadership makes things happen.

The most precious and intangible quality
of leadership is trust -- the confidence that the one
who leads will act in the best interest of those
who follow -- the assurance that s/he will serve the group
without sacrificing the rights of the individual.

Leadership's imperative is a "sense of rightness"
knowing when to advance and when to pause, when
to criticize and when to praise, how to encourage others
to excel.  From the leader's reserves of energy
and optimism, his followers draw strength.  In her
determination and self-confidence, they find inspiration.

In its highest sense, leadership is integrity.
This command by conscience asserts itself more
by commitment and example than by directive.  Integrity
recognizes external obligations, but heeds
the quiet voice within, rather than the clamor without.

Source:  Educet

#36 Giving Thanks

This past Thanksgiving I spent  time taking stock of the many reasons I have to be thankful.  Like everyone I have had the ups and downs and good and bad times of life--losing love ones is always hard, but mostly I have lived a very bountiful life -- so far -- and who knows what the rest of it will bring.

I hope all of you can say the same.  I had a varied career in state government and for the last  twenty years I was fortunate to have a job that I loved -- challenging and varied, working with coworkers that I liked and respected.  I felt so lucky to work in a very supportive, progressive and collegial environment where I had a voice.

Having a voice is important.  We all want to be heard, we all want to believe that we matter, and we all want to think that we have something meaningful to contribute to our workplace -- why else would we have been hired (we ask ourselves).  But do workers these days really have an opportunity to contribute with their voice, their talents, or are they just instructed from above and told what to do?  Being directed to do something in a certain way without any thought does not lead an employee to feel valued.

What has happened?   We thought our comfortable middle class lifestyle, with good paying jobs, would last forever.  We thought this country would always remain strong and American corporations, government institutions and political leaders all had our collective best interests at heart.  We just assumed they would take care of us.  We forgot that not so long ago others who came before  had to win hard fought battles for equal opportunity, good jobs with decent pay, safe working conditions and fair treatment at work -- supposedly a merit system in government.  We became complacent --  yet we expected all of these rights and liberties to last forever.

Nothing lasts forever unless we stand up and demand it.  It is just human nature.  While no one was paying attention, those who could  got greedy; they thought only of themselves first -- higher salaries, bonuses, bigger pensions, and lavish houses -- these are all part of the deal.  Their ego demands it.  And they will conspire with others and compromise everything just to get what they want -- the end justifies the means.

The saying that "bad can only happen when good people do nothing" is so true.  So as we head into the holiday season my wish for all of you is that you will reflect on the things that you are thankful for and find the resolve to be willing to fight for them.  We need to ensure that our children have things be thankful for on the future Thanksgivings of their lives -- so that they too can live a bountiful life.

#35 Pruning the Vine

When I say "pruning the vine" I mean disciplining those "bad actor" employees that deserve to be disciplined.   It means getting rid of the deadwood just as you would with a plant.  Pruning brings renewed life and vigor to a plant and promotes healthy growth.  "Pruning" can also be a very positive thing for an organization and all of its employees.

Sometimes the "pruning" can be drastic and sometimes it can be a snip here and a snip there --- if it is well thought out and done fairly -- it can be essential to maintaining a good healthy workplace.   If numerous interactive dialogues have taken place between supervisor and employee and clear expectations for this employee have been set, and the employee is just are not able or willing to change, then for the health of the organization the employee needs to be dealt with.

Other good employees who watch and work with the "bad actor" employee begin to feel great frustration.  They ask themselves and others why are they working so hard when so and so is not.  If the "bad actor" employee is not dealt with, after a fashion they begin to question management and start to think that no one is paying attention and that no one cares -- all of this leads to an organization with bad morale.

In state government especially it is often said, "It is so hard to do anything to employees -- labor unions and all.... you know".  Well I am here to tell you, that is absolutely not the case.  While it is a lot of work to put together an adverse action and deal with the potential subsequent hearings, it can be well worth a department's while.  The employer will either get the attention of the employee to let him/her know that they are serious; then the employee can decide between two choices -- s/he can either "clean up their act" or s/he can continue the bad performance/conduct and eventually earn him/herself an exit from state government.

Not only that, if the "bad actor" is dealt with, it sends a very positive message to everyone that someone is paying attention (and cares).  This is a good message for everyone  in the organization -- it also telegraphs to everyone in the organization that they too may need to "clean up their act".

While dismissal of an employee, of any tenure, is always a difficult decision, sometimes it is the only choice.  "Pruning the vine" in an honest and fair manner will help promote a healthy organization and a positive and energized workforce.

#34 Managing to Strengths

So you think you hired yourself the perfect employee.  You are feeling so good about this person that you know you it will be smooth sailing from here on out.  But pretty soon you begin to notice that while s/he performs some duties really well, there are other things that s/he does that are not so great...Oh no, you say!  What am I to do now?

You are going to have to attempt to fix this employee's shortcomings -- right?   This will include having the dreaded "talk" with the employee.  Never a fun thing. I am sure the talk will go something like this, "(name), while you do this really well, I am noticing you are not doing these other things quite up to par".  From the employee's perspective s/he hears, "I am doing this whatever really well", and feels good for a moment.  However, when the but word comes out of your mouth, the employee hears nothing else.  From the employee's viewpoint all s/he can think is "Oh here it comes again", and all s/he hears is "blah..., blah..., blah."  Just like in the Charlie Brown cartoon specials.

This attempt to change the shortcomings in an employee seems logical, but does it work?  The fact of the matter is that individuals who are not good at something, typically are never going to get much better.  You can spend countless hours talking, fretting and sending employees to additional training classes.  If someone does not have the talent, ability or motivation, they will never be particularly good at that task(s).

A few years back in a book titled "The Strengths Finder", it was suggested that managers focus on an employee's strengths.  If you emphasis his/her strengths and allow the employee to continue to learn and get better at what they do best, all of you will be much happier and productive.  The thought is to supplement his/her talents with another employee who is strong in the area that the first employee is not so good in.  It creates a win-win situation  for both employees, and ultimately for you, the manager, too!

So try managing to strengths and quit spending so much time on an effort that will bring little if any rewards.  No more dreaded "talks" -- you and your employee will be very pleased with the results!

#33 Hiring Hard, Managing Easy

Do employers really know the person that they are hiring?  Have they done multiple interviews, and thorough reference checks; have they searched Facebook and other sources to find out information regarding potential hires -- in other words have they done their "due diligence" regarding their new hire?  For most employers I believe the answer is no.  Yet that is one of the most important questions that employers need to answer -- who am I hiring.

When hiring an employee, managers and hopefully a well trained human resources staff person will be fully vetting a potential hire.  They will be establishing that the person has the abilities, traits, values, interests and motivations to do the job.  In addition, they will also be assessing if the person has the knowledge, skills and experience to do the work that is required.

It is easier to develop skill sets in employees than it is to change their behavior.  By the time a person arrives at a prospective employer's door step, they have an established personality and behavior pattern.  Even though the candidate may have the requisite skill sets, if they have behavior problems, the manager and the organization will be in for a very bumpy ride.  That is why doing a through review of an prospective employee is so essential.

Multiple interviews are strongly advised.  All well run companies, like Google, mandate at least three or four hiring interviews.  The employer needs to get a good "read" on the person to try and determine something about the person -- are they telling the truth; are they honest; basically trying to determine the character of the candidate.  According to Michael Gladwell in his book "Blink", it is possible to determine a lot about a person in only 30 seconds -- in the blink of the eye -- if one understands what they are seeing and can spot inconsistencies.  FBI profilers and psychologists believe that individuals can be trained to read others and they also believe that a certain percentage of individuals have the innate ability to read others.

Studies show that only 8 percent of verbal communication is the actual words that are spoken.  The other 92 percent is the body language-- including eye contract, diverted eyes, blinking eyes, and  differences in tone and intonation.  That is why it is so important to have the "elevator talk" with the candidate about nothing special first, which then leads up to more specific questions.  If interviewers are comfortable then subsequent interviews are scheduled hopefully with a variety of others.  That way it can be determined that the behavior, including words and actions are consistent throughout all interviews.

If HR and managers are satisfied, then references need to be checked (perhaps to include a background check).  If former employers pause while answering a reference question regarding a former employee, it is important for the person asking the questions to acknowledge the pause and ask what is causing them to pause.  It is not enough to just ask rote questions and assign a score of between 1-10.  Probative questions   and descriptive words are necessary.

While this process is not accomplished in the blink of an eye, it usually leads to employers making good hiring decisions -- they feel fairly certain that they know who they are bringing in to their workplace.  They are  Hiring Hard, and Managing Easy.

#32 How to Build an Organization

When a new organization is being conceptualized, either an individual or individuals have to decide how it is going to be structured.  They must consider all of the functions that are necessary to make the organization viable.  Then they have to decide how to structure each of of those functions (departments).

Decision makers would need to decide what kind of organization they want -- one that operates as a hierarchical top down, command and control organization or a more egalitarian organization -- where all employees can tribute.  They then need to determine a proposed budget for the organization including overhead and the cost of  personnel.  In most governmental institutions the personnel cost, along with benefits and other worker's compensation costs, is usually the largest percentage of their budget.

With that in mind, leaders need to decide what kind of expertise is needed to perform various functions within the defined departments.    They  also need to know about the labor market in their geographical area in order to determine what a fair salary would be for an employee with the requisite knowledge, skills and abilities.

Oftentimes if the "word on the street" is that the organization has a open, entrepreneurial  approach to managing employees the "best and the brightest" will want to join the team.  That is a big help in recruiting, but in any case a plan for recruiting needs to be formulated in order to attract the best talent for the money.  Hiring the right employees can be one of the biggest problems that organizations face.   They can make very hasty decisions, based on some very wrong assumptions.  Time after time, I have seen that happen.  When it does they instantly call human resources and want human resources to fix their problem.  Sometimes that is not a simple as it may seem.

Once upon a time in State Government there was a yearly conference just for human resources and labor relations personnel.  It covered the full gamet of issues regarding employees.  Over the 16-17 years of this very valuable conference, only once did they present a session called  Hiring Hard, Managing Easy.

I was very fortunate because where I worked I had already been following this basic principal for a long time.  And in my mind, it is the only way -- hiring a new employee is not a decision to be made quickly or lightly.  Once you hire them they are yours, unless you spend the time and energy to take some action to reject them.

If you don't hire honest,  talented employees, at all levels, your organization will always have problems and not function as efficiently as it could.  How do you go about Hiring Hard and Managing Easy?

That will be the topic for next time -- stay tuned.

#31 What We Can Learn from Steve Jobs

As we all know, Steve Jobs changed our lives forever with his Mac, I-phone and other I-devices.  But what many may not know is his philosophy on how to run a business.  When the company Apple was created,  it was set up in a non-corporate style without a top down management style.   

In a 1996 interview with NPR's Terry Gross,  he stated that Apple "hired truly great people and gave them the room to do great work."  Because employees were not told what to do (as is more typical in the corporate world), Apple created a corporate culture that was "much more collegial than hierarchical."  This culture brought a "liberal arts perspective" to the organization.  That was because he wanted  to bring "a liberal arts audience to...geeky technology."  He wanted everyone at Apple, regardless of level, to participate.  Steve Jobs felt that computing should be designed for everyone and everyone could and should be able master the computer, not just "5 percent of the population."  It was this philosophy that allowed for bringing "beautiful photographs, or pictures or artwork, to people to help them communicate."  And so he did.

He also shared more of his philosophy at a commencement speech at Stanford University in 2006.  Jobs readily admitted that he had never graduated from college, but he had a passion for learning and creating.  He further explained that he had dropped out of college but took a calligraphy class instead.  That class proved to be serendipitous, as what he had learned 10 years earlier led to the "beautiful topography" that was built into the Mac.  His advice was to trust yourself -- your gut, destiny, life, karma, whatever.  Even if you do not know exactly where you are going in life, trusting in yourself will eventually get you there.

Jobs further counseled everyone to find what they love.  He stated, "Your work is going to fill a large part of your life, and the only way to be truly satisfied is to do what you believe is great work.  And the only way to go great work is to love what you do."  Additionally he talked of death so he counseled students not to "waste time living someone else's life."   He cautioned, to not be "trapped by dogma-- which is living with the results of other people's thinking.  Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice.  And most important have the courage to follow your heart and intuition."

He concluded his speech with the words printed on the last issue of The Whole Earth Catalog (a sort of hippie bible of the 1960's).  On the last page of the Catalog was a picture of a back country road --  peaceful yet implying perhaps a great adventure ahead -- under the picture were the words -- Stay Hungry.  Stay Foolish.

Too bad our governmental institutions don't take those words to heart -- encouraging employees to always be alive to the possibilities and the creativity of the collective minds that they have assembled.  Even though it is not encouraged at work, I encourage you in all walks of your life to Stay Hungry.  Stay Foolish.  It's a pretty darn good philosophy -- and it makes you feel pretty darn good too.

#30 What is an Organization?

An organization is defined as a social unit of people, structured and managed to meet a need or pursue collective goals.  The word organization itself comes from the Greek word "organ" -- which means a compartment for a particular job.  Thus an organization is made up of people, divided into divisions (compartments) to do a particular job which contributes to the collective goals of that entity.

Each organization takes on an energy of its own.  That energy comes from the leadership and the vitality of the individuals that make up each one of those divisions.  If employees are engaged in their work, and if they are allowed to speak up and contribute, they show up awake and alive each day.  They are vested in new ideas and outcomes -- this energy makes an organization a living, breathing entity -- it becomes alive.  It has a "soul" and it takes on a a creed -- words and actions that all those working for the organization recognize and live by.  But for this to happen, each department must be fully functional and pulling its share of  the load.  If there is a weak link in the system, the entity suffers.

Wow, doesn't this sound similar to our human body?  We have many vital organs that are all working to support our entire body.  Each organ has a distinct function and role, but all are interdependent upon one another.  Organs all must be working in perfect harmony, and receive good nutrition, exercise and positive thoughts in order to remain healthy.  If this does not happen, one organ may begin to fail and thus the whole body becomes unhealthy.

The same applies to an organization.  If leaders tell lies and only provide support and nourishment (recognition or compensation) to a  particular division or person(s), the rest of the organization starts to become dysfunctional -- divisions are no longer working in sync.  When that happens, employees become disheartened, the energy and enthusiasm is lost -- its "soul" and creed begin to crumble.   The organization is in trouble and begins to fail.

Our governmental organizations are failing -- they are not working in harmony toward collective goals.  All of us are paying their salaries and must insist through our words, actions and votes that honest leaders and talented employees are hired to revitalize our important governmental functions.  This issue is too important to ignore!

#29 No Complaints for a Day

I was reading something yesterday that once again made me sit up and take notice -- it asked,  how much do you complain every day?  I felt like I had been exposed and I had to ask myself rhetorically, was the author talkin' to me?  Hummm....I have to admit that I do complain maybe just a wee bit too much sometimes.   Therefore, I decided to take the challenge -- to become aware of my complaining and to stop it -- at least for one whole day (is that even possible?)  Then I decided that I would incorporate that notion of  no complaints into my next blogs.

So starting today, and for the foreseeable future, I will do things a bit differently.  I will put on my Human Resources/Admin Director Hat and write a series about organizations -- a how to, if you will.  How to built a good organization; how to hire good, talented and honest employees; how to set a positive tone and build trust within an organization; how to teach and train employees; how to get employees laughing and working together as a team; and how to reward employees for a job well done.

In the current environment, it may sound impossible -- but I guarantee you -- it is not...it takes work and careful thought and consideration -- egos need to be left at the door -- but it can happen.  I know --  I lived and worked in an organization just like that for over 20 years.

So for the next several weeks, I promise no whining; only insightful thoughts and observations on building and maintaining thriving organizations.

#28 Nothing Speaks Excellence Like a Good Buzz Word

Orchard Hardware Supply used that phrase for a springtime commercial.  They were spoofing all of the current buzz words used to describe how our businesses are so open and honest, etc....or are they?  The more we hear these words, the more I think we have to question what it is organizations really do or how they are doing it.  Jargon and double speak are cheap these days, but honesty seems to come at a premium.

Organizations profess to have "core values"; they create mission statements informing people what they think they are supposed to be doing.  They talk about win-win solutions; getting down to the granular level, getting away from silos, etc.  But my favorite is the word transparency.  Everything is about transparency today -- but when you try and pin someone down about numbers or business practices, or why someone is not getting their paycheck on time -- there are excuses -- without any real answers or transparency.  And now we know the Security and Exchange Commission (SEC) has been systematically destroying records for the last 17 years -- how's that for transparency?  What is it that they did not want anyone to find?

It seems to me, the more organizations talk about all of these things, the less they actually live by these words -- they "doth protest too much, methinks."  While we have never had a perfect world or society, we could at least trust some of the information that was provided to us.  And now with the information highway, nearly everything can be verified, but yet leaders lie and mislead us daily.  When we did not use jargon and double speak, we actually did real work, with real outcomes, and relied on real numbers to balance our budgets and produce profit and loss statements.  Most institutions and companies had integrity and ethics.

As a case in point, the misspeak was so bad at Monday night's Republican debate, that Dana Milbank of the Washington Post Writer Group stated that a candidate when pushed "resorted to the time honored tradition of making up stuff".  He further stated that the same candidate when nailed by another candidate, "licked his lips...looked at the ceiling...and blinked so rapidly his eyes could have been sending a coded S.O.S. signal".

That's funny, but this is not funny stuff.  Our state institutions and country are in trouble -- which means that all of us are in trouble.  We need to be told the truth -- by someone.  We need to bring honesty and integrity back to our government and our corporations.  We need to pay attention to the lies and doublespeak -- our future is too important to be left to those of both political parties that constantly lie, all the while doing something else entirely behind the scenes.

It is time to demand honesty and integrity from our leaders and get our institutions functioning effectively again.   I think we did create win-win solutions long before those buzz words were used.  We lived by them every day.  As Orchard Hardware Supply said at the end of their commercial, "We've been using best practices since 1931."  Enough said.

#27 9/11 Ten Years Later

Have we forgotten who we are?  Both individually and as a nation?  Watching footage of this terrible day brings back so many strong feelings and makes them fresh all over again. Remember ordinary citizens doing extraordinary things to help one another?  Remember their bravery and selflessness?  How people helped people -- coworkers, friends and strangers alike.

This country was united.  We all supported one another in our shock and grief,  but moreover we felt a collective determination as a country.   The nation came together -- out of such tragedy came such great resolve and strength.  It was a shared experience that reshaped us, we thought for the better.

Why have we forgotten who we are in the past decade?  It is because of the two wars; Hurricane Katrina;  the "mortgage meltdown" and ensuing near financial ruin of this country; or is it the persistent lies and blame that get tossed around daily in our workplaces, in our political arenas -- local, state and national.  Leaders would rather see people and their country fail rather than work together with respect.  Are we all emotionally  shut down because we feel so helpless?.  Where is our collective resolve now?

Let is use this day as an opportunity to remember who we are --

A good example is the CEO from the financial services firm Cantor Fitzgerald, Howard Lutnick.  On 9/11 he arrived late to work because he was taking his son to his first day of kindergarten.  He arrived after the first plane hit and was there to watch the towers fall.  Of his 960 employees, 658 were killed -- every employee in the World Trade Center --  including his brother and his best friend.

He and the rest of the workers could have just given up.  But because of his resolve and that of the other remaining employees, it was decided the "company would survive", they would not let what they had worked so hard for crumble.  Moreover they would  honor those that they had lost.  Those remaining employees pulled together and worked through their grief and got the company back up and running within a few days.

At that point CEO Lutnik's goal  "was to take care of the families of the people we lost and that was the most important thing".  It was decided that 25 percent of Cantor's profits for the next five years were to be set aside to be distributed to families of the deceased -- which turned out to be $180 million dollars; in addition, families health care costs were also covered for 10 years.

All Cantor employees were committed and Lutnick said, "It changed our outlook about what was important about business".  "It also created sort of that bang of what type of human being are you right here, right now".  "I didn't think that there was a choice.  Either we take care of our friends' families or I'm not a human being".

The company is bigger and stronger today because of all of their collective hard work -- and perhaps because they had a greater purpose than just making money.  CEO Lutnick said, "The best way to show someone you love them is to care for the people they love."

Let us begin anew this day our determination and resolve, individually and collectively and not forget who we are as Americans -- we care and we take care of each other -- or who are we are human beings?

#26 In Honor of Dr. Martin Luther King's March on Washington 8/28/1963

With the new memorial to MLK in Washington and remembering his "I Have a Dream" speech on that day over 48 years ago, it made me think of all of the words of wisdom that he spoke.  Below are a few of his quotes -- 

Whatever your life's work is, do it well.  A man should do his job so well that the living, the dead, and unborn could do it no better.

A genuine leader is not a searcher for consensus but a molder of consensus.

Whatever affects one directly, affects all indirectly.  I can never be what I ought to be until you are what you ought to be.  This is the interrelated structure of reality.

We must learn to live together as brothers or perish together as fools.

The ultimate measure of a man is not where he stands in moments of comfort and convenience, but where he stands at times of challenge and controversy.

We will remember not the words of our enemies, but the silence of our friends.

Our lives begin to end the day we become silent about things that matter.

Darkness cannot drive out darkness; only light can do that.  Hate cannot drive out hate; only love can do that.

These words seem as relevant today as they were 50 years ago.

#25 "Clear Eyes, Full Heart, Can't Lose"

Those words were said by the high school football team before each game in the recently ended "Friday Night Lights" television series.  It was one of  the best TV series of all times and lasted for five years.  If you have never seen it, it was not just about football, but so much more -- it was about life -- the ups and downs, good and bad, redemption and everything in between.  I highly recommend it!

Coach Taylor would shout the words, "Clear Eyes, Full Heart", then the team would follow up by shouting back, "Can't Lose".  It was a way of pumping the players up, getting everyone focused and uniting them as a team.  But why those words?

Here is what I took those words to mean --

Clear eyes -- This is the intellectual piece -- Players know the calls, they know their positions and what is expected of them; they know their opponent and  their teammates; they are prepared for  inclement weather and other factors outside of their control-- they have the knowledge to play a good game. 

Open heart -- This is the emotional piece -- Players are willing to put themselves into every play -- they care, they risk injury -- their desires, integrity and character, everything that they have is on the line.  They play with courage.  (The word "courage" comes from the Old French word coeur meaning heart so "courage" is the measure of their heartfelt participation in the game.) 

Can't lose -- if you show up and put everything that you are and have into an endeavor, you cannot lose in life.  The coach would say, "Gentlemen, we may not win tonight, but you are all winners just by being here and playing".   Giving their all and caring made them winners, whether they won or not.  Sometimes you just need to show up in life.

Isn't that so true?  Just showing up and being you is enough.  Can we ask any more of people than to be fully present -- with their talents, integrity and heart, willing to let themselves be seen -- whether they win the battle or skirmish, but being courageous enough to not allow anyone make them feel small?    There is so much incentive these days to feel small so someone else can feel big.  When we play small, we give up ourselves and our own personal power.

It is time that we show up at work or in life with "Clear eyes, full heart" and we absolutely "can't lose".  It is sometimes a bit scary at first, but you will find that it feels really good!!

#24 Has Life Become One Big Checklist?

Have you noticed that almost everywhere you turn, life has been reduced to a checklist? Is that because no one can think and decide things for themselves, or are citizens, workers and students no longer allowed to think for themselves?

Students are no longer taught how to think -- colleges will readily acknowledge that graduates are lacking in critical thinking skills, they possess few analytical skills and writing skills are practically nonexistent.  Why then are our students being taught only things that they need to remember on a standardized test?  Students are taught to memorize, but not to think, why?

Managers are creating checklists of what to say on telephone calls in call centers -- not just a checklist of what to cover in a conversation with a client, but the actual words employees need to use.  In several instances in call centers, when employees do not use the exact words they are considered to not be meeting standards as set forth on a quality assurance checklist.  Amazing!!

Managers are also setting criteria and issuing multi-page memos on how to write up  yearly performance evaluations.  Top level managers are providing the context and the wording to be used when their supervisors and subordinate managers are evaluating their employees.  There is no longer any discretion left to the individual supervisors/managers.  Why?  If leaders think that their employees cannot do a performance review on their own, why were they hired?  Or do leaders want absolute control --  "my way or the highway"?

Just last week at a state hearing regarding the consolidation of the State Personnel Board and the Department of Personnel Administration, it was agreed that a uniform set of standards for disciplining employees would be developed.  With that kind of checklist approach, it eliminates the discretion and discernment necessary to run a fair and equitable human resources management system.

Every person is different and every situation is different.  No two people are like and very rarely are two  situations alike.  There are usually mitigating circumstances which may alter the kind of discipline necessary.   As we know from clothing, one size does not fit all.  But yet that is what is being proposed.  And that approach has already been instituted in many schools -- zero tolerance --  whether the situation warrants it or not.

I have to wonder why?  Why can we not use commen sense anymore?.  What are leaders so afraid of? Are they afraid  that when people start to think and feel, they will realize that the leaders are not so smart, or as good intentioned as the leaders pretend to be. They would rather run the organization, state, or country off of the rails, than do the right thing -- the risk of not being re-elected or being replaced as a leader is too great. 

It is time to start abolishing this risk aversive checklist mentality. Since we collectively pay the salaries of all public workers -- schools, governmnent -- state and local, and all elected politicans, we can demand better for ourselves and our children.   It is time to stand up and be counted.

#23 Looking Out the Window

While attending my monthly gardening club meeting, the nursery owner was telling a story about his visit to Amsterdam.  He said was trying to find an English speaking TV station while in his room and ventured upon a Turkish station.  It was reporting the results of an investigation of a plane that had crashed while landing.

Everything seemed to be going fine; the pilots were going through their check list and making sure they had covered everything.  At the last minute they decided to "look out the window" and they were startled to find they were flying way too low.  They tried to pull the plane up, but it was too late; they crashed and died upon impact.

He related that story to his plants.  He feeds and waters and does everything on schedule (the checklist) but to insure that they remain healthy and saleable, he needs to look at the weather and temperature, the exposure, bug and virus infestations....he needs to daily "look out the window" to ensure other factors (not on the checklist) are also being addressed.

I think this is true for all of us -- we need to start looking around us to find out what really is going on --  in our workplaces and in our nation.  Can we trust everything that we are being told?  Do we get conflicting messages and mixed signals?  Our guts usually have a reaction to things even before we become conscience of them -- we need to learn to pay attention to those gut feelings; they are there for a reason.  They are the "Danger Will Robinson" moments!

So start "looking out the window".  You may be amazed at all you see -- some good and some bad...but you will become more aware and awareness can lead to you make more informed decisions for yourself -- never a bad thing.  I highly recommend it!

#22 We Are Born with a Sense of Morality

There is good news!!  University professors, part of a group of moral naturalists, believe that we are born with the capacity to recognize right from wrong.  They also believe that we continue to learn fairness and other virtues through observation as to how people live and cooperate with one another.  These observations help to form our moral values.

David Brooks, author of the Social Animal, makes this contention in a July 22, 1010 article published in the New York Times.  He reports that a University of Virginia social psychologist believes that a "moral sense is like our sense of taste, we have receptors that help us detect sweetness and saltiness, and we also have "receptors that help us recognize fairness and cruelty". 

In addition, Professor Paul Bloom of Yale University has found that babies "have a rudimentary sense of justice from a very early age."  Babies as young as six months will choose photos of someone attempting to help another person over someone who is attempting to do them harm, or to hinder them. 

These moral abilities rely upon emotional, intuitive processes, for good and ill.  Of particular note is the fact that general fear makes us risk-averse; anger makes us more risk-seeking.   At times, healthy anger can be a very good thing.  It empowers us to stand up and be counted -- to speak truth to power and to do the right thing  -- the moral thing.

I will also believe that most people, if allowed, want to do the right thing.  I saw it so many times during my working career.  Co-workers willing to step up an help the other -- working collaboratively with others to come up with solutions that were good for everyone -- stakeholders and employees.  Working in this type of moral and ethical environment is very empowering and beneficial for everyone.   

We have the ability to bring morality back to our society -- government and corporate America.  Collectively we have to do stand up and do the right thing -- hold officials accountable for their actions, and demand better.  I know we can -- it is in our DNA.

#21 Has the Pendulum Begun to Swing in the Other Direction?

I feel hopeful that with The Rupert Murdoch News of the World story, and the expanded reporting in newspapers including the Sacramento Bee, of misdeeds by local and state governmental officials -- change may be in the air.  My optimistic side feels as if this could be a start to the pendulum beginning ever so slowly the shift back to honesty and integrity in our corporations and government.   

The Rupert Murdoch story is particularly interesting as it shows us how pervasive the connections and corruption was/is.  It reached all the way to the Prime Minister, Scotland Yard, the Wall Street Journal and Fox News.  In fact this morning it was reported that Fox News was trying to lobby New Jersey Governor Chris Christie to run for President.  One reporter even wrote that News of the World  operated like an organized crime syndicate.

This incident has allowed us insight as to all the many organizations/people at the very highest level of government that were compromisable and compromised.   Incredulously those that were sworn to protect  -- police and watchdog organizations, were also involved.  Do we truly think that the United States or California is any different?  I don't think so.

Individuals who are honest and have integrity don't make it to positions of influence or power anymore.  Nearly all of our businesses and governmental organizations are run by people who are all about money -- the mean green.  We need to bring another reward system back -- ethics, morality, patriotism, some non-commercial human thing--that prevents this destructive and self serving behavior by our leaders.

How about leaders feeling a sense of self-satisfaction that they have done a job well done?  How about that they feel useful to society and that their life has some deeper meaning?  How about at the end of the day they can feel good that they have instilled a sense of ethics and morality in their workers which will carry on?  How about that?

I have a faint ray of hope because I do believe that morality is built into our human DNA....

More on that subject next week....

#20 The World is Upside Down

A few years ago a former co-worker used to say "world is upside down".  It was his way of expressing his frustration and disgust with an organizational structure that was no longer working.  I came across that same phrase while reading the book "The Big Short" about the collapse of the financial markets.  It was used when referring to an out of control Wall Street (before the collapse), in which nothing they were doing made sense. 

That is the way that I feel daily as I go about my retired life.  I get phone calls from former associates and listen to friends and others who complaint about their out of control, dysfunctional work places.  They all ask me questions about what I think about such and such -- I often say that it makes my head hurt.  The work world that I knew it for over 40 years no longer makes any sense to me.

Long ago I took an oath of office to the State of California.  That meant that I was loyal to the State (department that I worked for) -- not to any specific leader.  I was a public servant and I took that responsibility seriously.  The public, in some form or other, was paying my wages, and I was responsible (on their behalf) for doing my duties responsibly -- protecting and earning their trust. Those days seem to be a distant memory. 

Despite leaders and others signing that same oath, taking a mandatory course and signing a document showing that they have completed ethics training -- to include conflicts of interest -- those documents apparently mean nothing -- just something to sign, file away and ignore.  There must be another memo/oath that I missed, one that states the world of state government is your oyster -- make it work for you!

This take what you can get, however you can get it attitude is what is killing government and upsetting the general tax paying public.  If the public is served in any meaningful way, it is a happy accident.  When employees come forth and speak truth to power, they are vilified, shunned and perhaps even written up and terminated. 

Until those politicos, leaders and others that have created and perpetuated this giant debacle (for their own self-serving interest) are held accountable morally, financially and legally, nothing will change.  Real change cannot be built on a crumbling foundation.  Until that happens,  the world will continue to be upside down!

Note:  I have been so busy of late -- summer is keeping me way too busy to continue to blog two times a week.  Going forward look for my blog on Tuesdays until further notice.  And thanks to everyone who is reading -- I greatly appreciate it.

#19 We are All Connected

Shortly after I retired, I decided that I would reconnect with my gardening roots.  I signed up for an 18 week gardening class taught by Master Gardeners.  I learned about soil composition, water saturation rates, vermiculture and many other useful topics.  However, my favorite part of the 18 week class was learning the following:

Master Gardener, Bill Pierce, was telling of a landscaper that had called him and asked if  he could be responsible for killing one of the his client's trees.  The landscaper had cut down a tree 50 feet away from a healthy but now dying tree.  He had put stump killer on the remaining tree stump in order kill it  -- and the client was thinking that killing the stump had also killed the tree at the opposite side of his yard.  The landscaper wanted to know if this was even possible.

The answer was yes.  Trees and other plants with their extensive root systems send out feeder roots that cover quite a distance.  These extensive root systems  provide water and nutrients to other plants within the vicinity.  If one tree takes in water and food,  it automatically shares with the other trees and plants.  Plants as it turns out, are all interdependent upon one another.

I don't remember too much about all of the rest of the information that I learned -- but this one stuck with me.  And I loved it -- that plants are all connected -- just like we humans.  We all stand or all fail together -- although at times, it does not feel that way.  What is good for one of us is good for all of us.

I think that is what is wrong with our politics, our leaders and sometimes ourselves -- we pretend that we as people are not linked -- we somehow feel that we are better than the next, and they are of no moment to us.  But when we look out for one another, help one another, and teach another, we are forming a community of roots that tie us together and make us all strong.  When a person (co-worker, family member) starts to falter we collectively help out with our resources and strength.  And we are all the better for it.  We are all connected -- just like the plants -- whether we like it or not. 

It is time that we get back to our roots (literally), and start to live in sync with nature.  As the late, great Jackie Robinson, the first African American to play in major league baseball said, "A life is not important except the impact it has on the life of others".  We should all live by those words.

#18 Does the Patient Want to be Healed

Several years back when I first discovered that the "patient" (defined as governmental and other institutions), did not want to be healed, I was absolutely aghast.  I could not imagine that malfeasance was knowingly being condoned and rewarded.  I now understand how naive I was. 

While politicos, leaders and others have a vested interest in maintaining this status quo, I  suspect the average worker would want the "patient" healed.   Employees would like their workplace to make sense.  They would like to trust what their leaders are telling them, and be rewarded for their good work.  They want to feel like they are part of something good, bigger and outside of themselves.  I do believe that humans like (and maybe even need) to feel useful.   It is good for our mental well-being.

Despite employees and the general tax paying public wanting change, I personally do not see the "patient" changing without being forced to -- why should they?  They enjoy positions of power and adulation, they enjoy controlling people, spinning the facts and figures to suit their needs, and they are rewarded handsomely for doing so. 

Someone asked in a comment to this blogsite, "Where does the pathway (to change) start"?  And my answer to that is the pathway to change starts with and within each and everyone of us.  When large numbers of employees are sick and tired of being sick and tired and they collectively stand up and say ENOUGH -- that is when change will happen.     

In Malcolm Gladwell's book "The Tipping Point" he wrote about how there is one defining moment that makes something happen.  It can be the last straw, the largest number of protesters ever or something seemingly insignificant.  Tunisia's tipping point came on December 17, 2010, when a revolt was started as a result of a 20+ year old male food vendor who had his scale confiscated for supposedly not paying his fee.  He went to the office in charge of food vendors to complain -- they told him to pay his fee, which he had repeatedly paid again and again.  He was so frustrated and at his wits end, he bought gasoline and lit himself on fire in the middle of the street.   Others were so upset they took to the streets and months later overturned their despot leader. 

So the pathway to change begins with all of you -- from the bottom up.  There are great strengths in numbers -- and there are large numbers from the middle on down.  Individuals can be knocked off rather easily -- large numbers of workers cannot.  You are all a  force to be reckoned with.  So be the pathway -- be that change -- you will be amazed at what you can do!

#17 Why Is No One Held Accountable Anymore for Anything?

After celebrating our liberties and freedom this July 4th holiday, I ask myself are we really free?  Do we have the right to come forward and speak the truth?  Do we get rewarded for doing the right thing?  Do our institutions, which have a variety of checks and balances built within their structures, really work, or are they just another arm of some political party/opportunistic self-serving leader?

Workers and others have repeatedly attempted to "blow the whistle" in all ways possible.  The Governor's Office, various Boards and Commissions; various legislators and even the Bureau of State Audits -- all have been put on notice, but to no avail.  Those in positions of authority have done nothing.  Why is that?

The California National Guard saga has been going on for over ten years; others like CalPERS, State Commission on Teacher Credentialing, and most recently CalSTRS --  those did not just happen overnight -- and they are not the only ones. Kathy Carroll, a former CA Commission on Teacher Credentialing attorney, described her former workplace as a "private bureaucratic empire using public funds".  State institutions have become the personal fiefdoms of their leaders. The cronyism and self-dealing are destroying our state departments -- and it appears that no one cares. 

I found it illustrative in the same May 11, 2011, Sacramento Bee article regarding the Teacher Credentialing Commission wherein the Chairwoman Ting Sun stated", "I have never found blaming and shaming to be a constructive way of resolving problems".  Isn't that rich?  It is a perfect way of shifting blame onto the very people who are trying to hold her and her organization accountable.  I have news for you,  Ms. Chairwoman, since you accepted the job and get paid for doing it, you are responsible for your deeds and accountable for your actions/inactions.  Is this really such a novel thought; what did you think you were being paid to do? 

I think Andriana Huffington, in her post of July 29, 2011, hit upon the answer to my "why?" question.  She was discussing Greece and its financial problems (sound familiar?), when she posed a far more important question:  "Can a truly democratic movement break the stranglehold of corrupt elites and powerful anti-democratic institutional forces that have come to characterize not just the politics of Greece, but most Western democracies, including our own?"

Which brings me back to my other question  -- are we really free, and if so, for how long?

#16 Tribute to a Former Co-Worker

For past few days, I have been struggling to find the right approach to a topic that I wanted to write about.  Finally after many stops and starts, I decided what I really needed to write about was a former co-worker who recently passed away.  He showed me and others how to live a life worth living.   

With his passing, I and others acknowledged what knowing him had meant to us.  One who worked closely with him said "he was really something without ever telling anyone he was really something".  Another said that "his legacy would be the kindness that he showed to so many people".  I would agree with both of those sentiments, but he was so much more.   

Although he worked in a remote office hundreds of miles away from me, he managed to stay in touch.  He stayed in touch with others too -- talking about their ailing parents, as he too had older parents.  He was always funny; always was part of a his office's "lunch bunch" and added life and character to the workplace.  But more importantly, he lead by example.  He stood up for what he believed in.  He would not compromise himself or his division just to suit someone else.  He would carefully explain why he felt so passionately about what he did and why the integrity of his work product was so important to the greater whole.     

For over 20 years he headed up a division that hired numerous graduate student assistants.  The students would come for a year or two, get hands on practical experience and be mentored and tutored by someone who knew his business.   More importantly they worked for someone who also cared about them and their well being.  Upon his retirement several years ago, I was amazed at how many of his former students traveled far and wide just to honor him -- he meant that much to them.   I thought at the time that there was no greater tribute -- the idea that he had mentored and meant to much to so many just said it all to me.

He did not need a "core values" statement, he just was.   He was a man of integrity.  He was honest with himself and others, stood up for his values, treated  people fairly and with compassion, and cared about what he did.  He taught us so much, without even knowing it.  He was the real deal and we were all the lucky ones for having known him.

Good bye my friend, thank you for teaching me and others so much -- yours was indeed a life well lived.

#15 "Why Working Stiffs Feel Left Out"

A year ago New York Times writer, David Brooks, wrote an article titled "Why working stiffs feel left out".  He describes a hypothetical Ben, who has tried to do all the right things in his life.  He put himself through college; studied in a field  that led to a degree that could provide him a real job.  He graduated; got the job; worked his way up the ladder; and bought a modest house that he could afford.  He thought he was living an ethos that could be called "earned success".  Wasn't that supposed to be the American way?  Then things changed.   

I know of many employees who are just like Ben.  They got through their course work at college, started in entry level jobs and  slowly worked up the career ladder for ten, fifteen or twenty years honing their skills and gaining knowledge  in their chosen  fields of expertise.  They had an expectation that at some point they would be rewarded for all of their hard work, knowledge, skills and abilities.  They thought they had earned their "stripes" and were achieving their success the American way.  Then things changed. 

Instead, they were pushed aside.  Forced to find other careers, retire -- whatever, no one cared -- just be gone.  Other employees, some without any or very little experience -- certainly without the requisite knowledge and skills sets -- were given promotions.   These undeserved promotions were given  to opportunistic individuals who were willing to do whatever was expected of them without asking any questions or raising concerns -- in other words they were willing to go along to get along.  They have been rewarded for less than admirable behavior and achievements.  Is this " earned success" or is this the new American way?

I certainly hope not.  Is it is any wonder that our governmental institutions are not working well?  Misdeeds and wrong headed decisions are happening daily because most of current mid-level employees do not know enough to know they don't know.  Most of  the institutional knowledge left the buildings when long time workers who knew how to keep the wheels on the train, and who knew the moral, ethical and legal things to do, were replaced.  Just when we all needed them the most -- they are nowhere to be seen and are considered to be irrelevant.  Really? 

This is an injustice to not only those workers who had prepared themselves so well to take over leadership in departments, it is also an injustice to all of us taxpayers.  Is this really how we want  our own hard-earned money spent -- going to reward employees who do not now what what they are doing -- in order to please  narcissistic bosses who are busy decimating our governmental institutions?

Who will teach and train the younger workers coming into the work place?  Will they think that their supposedly "good looks and who they know," will propel them forward to a long, illustrious career?  Can our institutions last that long? 

If this is the new American way, we are all ultimately the losers for these expedient, but very bad decisions.  And is it any wonder that good,  honest "working stiffs" feel left out?  It is because they are!!!  

#14 Management of Human Resources -- Theory X, Y and Z

A long time co-worker and friend used to talk about the only thing he remembered from graduate school was the X,Y theory of human management.  Theory X -- management believes that employees are lazy, dislike work, and need to be closely watched and controlled.  Theory Y -- management trusts and assumes that employees are self-motivated, exercise self-control, and possess the ability for creative problem solving.   My friend was very much a proponent of Theory Y and he was also the one (mentioned in an earlier blog) that made managing his division look so easy that others thought that it ran itself. 

Douglas McGregor, from the MIT Sloan School of Management in the 1960's developed these theories of human motivation and they remain (though modified somewhat) the guiding principle of positive approaches to management, organizational development, and to improving organizational culture.  McGregor is also the reason that the term "human resources" is used today instead of personnel -- the idea that people were assets was unheard of before him.  Theory Z, later developed by William Ouchi, believes that workers can be trusted, so long as management can be trusted to support them and look out for their well being. 

It was always my belief that if you hired good, talented people and treated them well, they would perform well for you.  If you had employees you needed to watch and control, then you probably hired the wrong people.  I still believe that -- I think that rather than being progressive in our management thinking, we have regressed in the past decade-- no one trusts anyone.  It is very hard to have healthy workplaces without trust going both ways.
 
If one researches the best companies, they have strong human resource departments and they also follow some form of Theory Y and Z management practices.  They know that in order to attract talented employees with valuable, out of the box thinking, and who produce good work products, they need happy, healthy employees, who feel appreciated and valued.  Think Google, SAS and more locally, Nugget Markets.

Perhaps our governmental institutions need to re-evaluate their management beliefs and begin to re-institute management practices that are supportive of a productive, happy, healthy and creative work force. Then workers would not need to be watched and controlled so much (easy stuff), and there would be more time for workers and leaders to spend on problem solving (the hard stuff). 

#13 Personal Reflections and Some Comments

I have been at this for the last six weeks and I have enjoyed writing these blogs.  If you ask my friends, they will tell you I can talk about anything, any time, any where, and that is what I have been doing.  Perhaps it is what I do best.  Recently a close friend commented to me that my blogs were thought provoking but tended to be a bit dark and that was unlike me.   I had been thinking the same thing.

I started asking myself why the negativity, because I am typically a positive person.  I was a very effective problem solver.  I  thought there was a solution to every problem -- even if I did not know what it was -- I knew that I could go to my co-workers, or outside sources, to help me out.  Through a collaborative process, solutions were always found.  They proved to be effective because they were well thought out and pros and cons were always evaluated.  This kind of process, involving others and their best thoughts and wise counsel, was personally rewarding to me.  It was empowering to all of us and it was contagious.  It radiated up and down throughout the work place.

It is the lack of this honest, open communication, which is sanctioned by certain leaders/managers and their wanting to "hide the ball" mentality, which is causing our governmental institutions to become dysfunctional.   As Dr. Phil would say, "How's that working for you"?  Apparently not very well.

The question that I want to shout out, is why?  Why does everything have to be so controlled?  Were we not more effective when people were not "commanded and controlled" and could just think for themselves?  Didn't the workplace function better when employees could openly contribute and ask questions, without being put down or shunned?   Weren't we better off when employees were valued for their knowledge, skills and abilities, instead of their blind loyalty?  Since when it is a bad idea to value your employees and teach, train and mentor them?  These questions that I ask repeatedly are what make me cynical and upset.  

Do I think there are answers?  Yes I do -- but as usual, they are quite simple but not easy.  Changing established and entrenched mindsets is never easy,  but not impossible.  One person asked  two compelling questions regarding  the blog "We Need Surgery".  I was asked, who are these surgical teams and does the patient want to be healed"?  I have two short answers  for now:  (1)  I have thoughts of on structures of  surgical teams, and (2) I do not think that the patient wants to be healed.

Before I present my detailed thoughts regarding those two questions, I want to present two to three more blogs.  They will help lay the ground work for my answers to those very important questions.

Stay tuned folks -- I so appreciate that you are reading and commenting on these blogs -- keep the comments coming.

#12 We Need Surgery

Yesterday I read a post by Adriana Huffington.  It really resonated with me so I decided to make it the topic of today's blog.  The following is her post from June 8, 2011:

Reacting to the latest round of depressing jobs numbers, the president said that it is just like "if you got hit by a truck, it's going to take a while for you to mend." Being hit by a truck is not a bad metaphor -- but he left something out. If you get hit by a truck, you are taken to a hospital for major interventions. When you are wheeled through the emergency room doors on a gurney, people react; they move purposefully and quickly; machines are brought out; desperate measures are taken. But that's not at all what happened with the economy. Instead, the economy got hit by a truck, was wheeled into the ER, and those in charge largely left the patient to heal on his own while they went into a back room to talk about the long-term building plan for the hospital. You know what might help speed along the mending? Surgery.

I could not agree more.  We have been fiddling while our governmental institutions are collapsing around us (remember Nero)? 

While I believe that Governor Brown is attempting to do something on the state level -- most of these changes are minor -- reign in cell phones, collect past travel and salary advances (if the employees are still working) hold the line on hiring, and consolidate DPA and SPB.  While all of these are good, we need a much more drastic approach to fixing the total dysfunction inside most governmental organizations.  We need to surgically remove the malignancy that has been eating away at these structures of government for the past decade.

It is the cancerous leadership which has metastasized within the structures of many departments.  This has allowed for patronage hires; the total disregard for established rules or policies; the lack of accountability for those that have committed fraud or have serious conflicts of interest --  or serious ethics violations and major self-dealing.   No one is accountable for anything anymore -- it is truly stunning to me as I spent so much of my adult life working in government and being accountable. 

Adriana Huffington is right -- WE NEED SURGERY!

#11 Who's Zoomin' Who?

In 1990 Aretha Franklin released a song with the above title.  It refers to a man who thinks that he is hustling  her or working her over -- she knows what he is doing and she, in turn, is hustling him (or conning him like he is conning her).  I like the title of this song because it says so much.

A few blogs back I mentioned M. Scott Peck and his thought on the ultimate incivility -- when someone pretends that you are their "new best friend" when in reality they are treating you like a thing to be used, to get what they want from you.  

Well, what about those employees who are always flattering their bosses?  They say things like, "you are so pretty, you are so smart, you are so handsome, love your dress, hair, blah, blah, blah".  You can fill in the blanks.  They offer up flattery in order to score "brownie points" (hence the term brown nosing--well, maybe part of the reason for that term) from the higher ups.  Most people are very susceptible to this type of flattery -- let's face it, it feels good -- until you understand that they want something from you (or the boss) -- a promotion, recognition, being part of the "A" team -- whatever.  Everyone wants something for themselves. 

The problem with these interactions or transactions -- the one who acts like your new best friend, or the one who is offering up the flattery -- neither is based on anything that is real.  There is no honest, true relationship that is formed here; there is no authenticity.  It is all based on someones self-centered need for the other.  When things at work, or in life, get tough and start to fall apart, these false relationships also begin to crumble.  You will find that either party is expendable and can be "thrown under the bus" by the other in order to protect themselves.  There is no loyalty. 

In our very narcissistic world, it is easy to get caught up in all of this falseness -- it surrounds us and it is hard to escape.  Insincerity is modeled for us daily as a way of achieving success; however, always be aware of  "Who's Zoomin' Who?" 



 

#10 Quiet Leaders

Have you ever noticed that there are co-workers of yours who are just busy going about the business of their job?  They work efficiency and effectively.  They take the time to teach and train other employees.  They readily share their knowledge.  Often times these employees are not in any chain of command -- they are the quiet leaders in an organization.

Many highly effective employees are these quiet leaders.  They do not seek recognition and they do not do what they do for recognition or to get ahead.  They are competent within themselves and they do not step on others just to get a promotion. 

These quiet leaders within organizations are often the glue that holds a group together.  While others are off grandstanding, hoarding information and politicking, these employees are keeping the wheels on the train and are busy accomplishing their part of the organization's mission.

The sad part is that unless one really pays attention, most executive leaders to not know that these workers exist or how valuable they are.  When I used to work, there was a Division that was so well managed  --  they were exceedingly productive, had very few personnel issues and all worked well together.  The executive leaders often said that this Division "ran itself".   As the HR Director, I was amazed.  I knew that nothing ran itself.  The fact was that these leaders were focused on their goals, were unassuming, shared with, trained and acknowledged their employees' contributions.  They did it so well that it looked effortless -- but it was not.

Why is it the squeaky wheel gets all attention -- even if negative?   These types of employees are like children, they will get attention one way or the other.  The quietly effective people have no need to get this level of attention -- however, on occasion they do require validation.  

Hopefully your leaders are acknowledging these unsung and unseen quiet leaders.  If they are not occasionally acknowledged for their contributions, they may just take all of their expertise and contributions elsewhere.  Then everyone will soon notice that the wheels are beginning to come off the train....unfortunately, often times it is too late. Take a look around, become aware of those people that help and support you -- maybe you too are one of them --

So here is a big shoot out to all of you quiet leaders -- maybe others do not see you, but I know you exist.  Thank you for all that you do!

# 9 Doing The Right Thing

I took some time off recently to just play and have fun.  I needed to relax, renew and regenerate myself.   I am typically a positive person; however, I have to admit that from time to time I grow disheartened  about our collective ability to lead and govern ourselves.  As so often happens, just when I am at my lowest, something comes along to replenish my faith in our innate goodness as people and in our ability to do the right thing.

Who knew that by watching "60 Minutes" last Sunday night, my spirits would be lifted and my faith would be restored by being introduced to Staff Sergeant Sal Guinta.  Sergeant Guinta is the only living Medal of Honor recipient since the Vietnam War.  For 15 months nearly four years ago he was in many hellish fire fights in Afghanistan.  As he said, the only peace that he and his unit could get was in their dreams. 

He and his unit lived an uncertain life every day.  Yet the worst of the worst happened when they were overrun by the Taliban.  Their sergeant was killed and they heard over the Taliban radio that they -- the Taliban -- wanted a body.  He witnessed his friend get shot and the Taliban start to haul him away.  Sgt. Guinta refused to let that happen.  He ran into the middle of enemy fire -- wounded or killed the Taliban carrying away his friend -- enough so that the Taliban fled, allowing Sgt. Guinta and others in his unit to get to  their friend.

Unfortunately, their friend could not be saved.  However, Sgt. Guinta and others, who cared about the wounded soldier, were with him when he died -- their friendly faces were the last thing that he saw before passing away.  Because of his actions, their friend's body was able to be sent back to his family in the States, not left somewhere in Afghanistan.

Sgt. Guinta appears to be a very humble person who when faced with the very worst possible situation, did the right thing.  He does not see himself as a hero -- he is uncomfortable with all of the attention that has been bestowed on him.  He considers himself just a mediocre solder -- many others have given more -- but yet he finds himself in the limelight.

Perhaps he is just the right person at the right time to be in the limelight.  He is an ordinary guy who was just going about his business (of fighting a war) and did it in the best way he knew how.  He did not do it for glory or for accolades -- he did it because it was the right thing to do.

Sgt. Guita seems to represent so many of us workers.  We employees, for the most part, just want to go to work, learn our jobs, and be able to do the right thing.  No glory or limelight needed -- just the self- satisfaction of doing a job well done.
  

#8 The Destructive Side of Power

Wow, last week I did not know how timely the post regarding power was going to be.  Especially the sentence "The skills that lead to obtaining power deteriorate once power is obtained".  That seems to be particularly true of our former governor and the former head of the IMF.  Both men have made the headlines lately and both held positions of great power and prestige.  So I thought it might be instructive to talk a bit further about this whole power, bully, confidence issue.

How is it that they could fall so far so fast?  The how is that they thought they that were invincible.  They had paid staff and attorneys surrounding them helping to insulate and isolate them from their reality.  These staff ran interference for them, spun stories and kept their secrets just that -- secret.  We have seen the same story over and over -- here on a local level with the Realtor Michael Lyons and on a national level with Tiger Woods.  People in positions of power lose all sense of themselves and in reality, they truly believe that they are too big to fail.

We see some of these same characteristics  in our everyday leaders in government and other organizations.  These leaders have surrounded themselves with "yes" people.  These staff provide the same isolation and insulation as the outside high priced hired guns.  These type of leaders only tolerate people who are loyal to them  (or pretend to be) -- no matter what.  Loyalists reap the rewards, while other employees with a wealth and depth of knowledge are pushed aside.  Civil service is not so civil anymore. How is this patronage system working in state governmental organizations and other institutions?

Has anyone noticed that our institutions are failing as a result of this very self-centered -- what's in it for me leadership style?  Everyday there is some expose on another state department:  CalPERS, State Teacher's Credentialing  Commission, and the Military Department to name a few.   Believe me there are many more departments that haven't made the headlines -- yet

As Marcus Breton so eloquently wrote in the May 11, 2011 edition of the Sacramento Bee regarding  Governor Schwarzenegger, "We willingly chose celebrity over capability.  We chose slogans over beliefs; being photogenic over experience; being opportunistic over smarts...he continued with "Every day, individuals, small businesses, corporations and governments are run off the rails by people with their eyes open".

We are beginning to see the aftermath of this self serving power -- state government and other entities are beginning to deteriorate -- they have been "run off the rails".  Can we as workers and taxpayers really afford to continue to tolerate this leadership style?  I personally think not.  Let's not be hoodwinked by false charm and false promises anymore.

#7 Power and Confidence

I am sure we have all heard the saying that absolute power corrupts absolutely. Apparently that is true.  When Andrew Ross Sorkin wrote the book,  "Too Big to Fail" about what lead our financial system to nearly collapse, he was not talking about the financial institutions themselves, he was referring to the leaders of those institutions -- those leaders all felt that they personally were too big to fail.  What is it about being successful and powerful that leads people to have, as I used to say, a "head that can barely fit in the room".

Sometime ago I was reading an article in Psychology Today written by Hara Estroff Marano, and it is his contention  that the real meaning of power in the 21st century is the ability to change another person's state of mind.  This ability to influence others attests to the near-magical social power of confidence.  Think Bernie Madoff.  He pulled off the ultimate con job, over and over again -- getting many people to invest their money with him.  Why did so many smart, wealthy people invest with him?  It was his extreme confidence and power. 

The author further contends that we, as Americans,  do not want to acknowledge that every interaction has power dynamics built into it.  If one pays attention when they walk into a room, they can see who has the power -- but one must be attuned to this.  He also states "The thing about power and its kissing cousin, confidence, is that they influence you with or without your consent".

Dacher Keltner, professor of psychology at University of San Francisco, contends that when people lack confidence, they always pay too much attention to what others may think of them.  But for those people who have power -- it takes them in the other direction -- it makes them uninterested in others' evaluations of them and it leads them to pursue their goals without obstruction.  He further asserts that how we treat powerful people compounds the matter.  We are less critical of them, more flattering to them.  All these actions conspire to make the powerful person really confident.  Those individuals who are socially intelligent -- good at connecting with others -- generally acquire power and this feeling of being powerful changes people, often for the worse.

Power turns people into "raving sociopaths," says Keltner.  It distorts the way they see themselves.  They have a hard time seeing the world from other people's points of view.  They judge others less accurately.  They interrupt others.  They speak out of turn.  Their behavior becomes insensitive -- often in a costly fashion.

Those with this overinflated sense of power, often take excessive risks, stemming from over confidence.  Keltner further notes, this is the central paradox of power.  The skills that lead to obtaining power deteriorate once power is obtained.

Does this sound like some of our leaders? They cannot listen to wise counsel -- it is their way or the highway and they truly believe that if they think it, or say it, IT MUST BE RIGHT -- even though there are so many signals to the contrary. Our government and our governmental  institutions are the worse for having these overconfident, yet ineffective leaders.  We must train ourselves to truly see them for who they are and elect and appoint those individuals without this sense of confidence, power and entitlement.

#6 What Happened to Blog #5?

Last Thursday, May 12, 2011, I posted a blog titled Bullies – Life Imitates Art.  It was posted for a nanosecond as several followers read it before the site went down.  When Goggle Blogger came back up, it was no where to be found.  (Note to self –copy all posts and save in Word).   I am recapping in a Cliff Notes version the following so that everyone can be on the same page:

A.  Bullies are everywhere -- The Apprentice; Survivor; The Real Housewives of (insert name of city); political pundits, etc.

            1.  All promote bullies and/or alliances; “winning at all costs” and vanquishing of the other. 

B.  Because these bullies win, do we believe that they really have strength?  Do we confuse bullies for strong decisive leaders?  If they had real strength (of character, or within themselves) would they need to be bullies?

C.  Characteristics and actions of Bullies

            1.  Threatened by others, insecure or immature; shout or verbally abuse others, single out others for unjustified criticism or blame, exclude others from participating, and/or ignore or criticize someone else’s contribution/work. 

             

F.  Not a Winning Strategy for an Organization or Employees within the Organization

            1.  Some employees go underground; stop contributing – just show up every day and don’t (can’t) care about job or the organization

            2.  Other employees leave the organization (years of wisdom and institutional knowledge lost)

            3.  Still others decide to be loyal – loyalty is rewarded – leaders buy their loyalty with promotions – often for employees who are not qualified.

G. Time to acknowledge that some Leaders (whether in organizations or the political arena) are bullies and to stand up to their bullying tactics.

            1.  Every bully needs a victim – we all need to stop being victims – strength in numbers can stop them from continuing their seemingly "winning ways".  

Thanks to those of you who have commented -- keep them coming!