Business Is Not All Business

 

It can’t be! People work in businesses and people can’t be all business all the time. We have issues in our lives, there is family, and of course there is drama.

It is important for leaders care about the people on their team. They need to know what is going on in their lives. Many leaders disagree with this. They believe that it is possible, and even preferable, to completely separate business from their team’s personal lives. I believe it is more nuanced than that. Leaders don’t have to be best friends with their team, but they do have to care. If a team member is facing a personal challenge, it will impact their work. Leaders need to understand that. Business is not all business, because we are human! Remember this….

“People don’t care what you know, until they know that you care”

-       John Maxwell

Balance

 

There is always a lot of talk about work life balance. I want you to consider a different aspect of balance. There are fine lines in life that requires intentionality to navigate.

Consider…

·         Our strengths too excess, become our weakness

·         We often treat our loved ones worse than people we don’t even know

·         Things we love can become obsessions and unhealthy habits

·         A singular hyperfocus on any one aspect of life leaves voids other parts of our lives

·         Ever had a love/hate relationship?

How do you balance these aspects of your life?

Remember this line from a Jimmy Buffett song…

-       “It’s a thin line between Saturday night and Sunday morning.”

What’s in a number?

Numbers impact our lives in so many ways every day, especially us accounting types.   Where would we be without numbers, math, and the ability to calculate?  Numbers track prices, times, markets, returns, currencies, blood pressure, dates, profits, the temperature and so much more.

…then there are age numbers.  We use numbers to track the years we have spent on this earth.  For some reason, the numbers associated with our age seem to stir our emotions.  They also draw varying reactions from those around us.  We tend to make a big deal out of birthday numbers.  The type of big deal varies with age and personal preference, but birthdays seldom pass without some comments and cards, if not a full-blown celebration.  Even a bigger deal is made of certain milestones, often those numbers ending in zeros.  What is it with numbers that end in zero?  After all, they are just numbers like all the other numbers we encounter every day.  They just represent another year like the other nine in a decade.  Why do we let age numbers, especially the milestone ones bother us?  Sure, the larger ones indicate that we are getting older.  They also mean that we have more experiences, more good times, more challenges we have overcome.  We have had more tears but more smiles as well.  They mean we have more to be thankful for.  We have had more years to make us who we are.  Hopefully, that means we are wiser possibly more seasoned.  It is not that I am suggesting that we stop counting, although some might prefer that.  I just think we need to step back and think about the numbers associated with age.  They are just numbers and larger ones are not necessarily a bad thing!

What a year…

Last Thursday, March 11^th, marked the one-year anniversary of our lives changing in this country. Here in Houston our beloved Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo was canceled.  It seemed unfathomable at the time. Latter that day the NBA season was suspended. The pandemic was in full gear. Kids were on spring break and they never returned to the classroom.  Within two weeks the entire country was virtually shut down.  We learned how to Zoom and discovered a new meaning for the word pivot. Bicycles and home gym equipment sold out within days. We became closer to our family we live with, but farther from those we could not visit.

We have faced and survived a huge challenge. Our country will not be the same. There is good to come from this and hopefully we have learned some lessons. Lessons learned are the fruit of challenging times.

How has the last year changed you as a leader? How have you and your teams adapted? Are you stronger, more flexible? Are you more understanding and patient? Has your business model changed for the better? Do you operate more efficiently?

Seek positive change. Come out of this in a better place and prepared to move forward.

Why do we wait?

Why do we wait until people grow old, or even die, before acknowledging and praising them?  Why do we let those who have positively impacted our lives walk around without knowing what they mean to us?  What don’t we tell people when they play a role in making us who we are?  We may not all get that chance, and we should not wait.  Obituaries are a great place for tributes, but they come too late.  No time is better than the present to share with others how they have impacted your life. 

Thank people who have given you good advice.  Praise those who teach you life lessons.  Tell people you appreciate their honesty and integrity.   Let friends and family know what makes them special to you.  Share your appreciation with people who listen and mentor you.  Verbalize your love for others.  Don’t wait another day…let people know the impact that they have had on your life. 

Friends

People are not meant to live alone. Friends and relationships are a huge part of our lives.  We may want to think we are independent and can live without those around us, but we all know that we cannot.  These times of social distancing and limited community events can be challenging for friendships, but we need one another now more than ever.  We need support and advice from friends.  We need the sharing of life with others.

Friendship is a two-way street.  It is as much about being a friend to someone as it is about having a friend.  Some friends come and go.  Others become fixtures in our lives for a lifetime.  Certain friends are placed in our lives at specific times for specific needs we may have at the time.   My life has been blessed with wonderful friendships.  Many of those have outlasted job and family changes over many years.  I can only hope to have been a friend to others in the way described by this insightful young girl.

 

True friends are the ones who see the pain in your eyes,
when everybody else is fooled by your smile.
--Kimmy Robbins, (14 years old)

Happy Memorial Day!

The purpose for Memorial Day remains the same, don’t forget that, but this one is totally different.  It still marks the beginning of summer, but we will not be celebrating in normal fashion.  Graduations abound this time of year, but they are not being held the same way.  Vacations usually begin next week, but will they?  It is time for outdoor concerts and festivals, but not this year.  It feels different because our world is different. 

Memorial Day is the day to remember those who gave their lives for the freedoms we enjoy in this country.  Celebrate safely and remember those who made the ultimate sacrifice.  Their sacrifice puts our being stuck at home a few weeks into perspective.

Who’s in Charge?

Sometimes I will walk into my office, a meeting, or even my own home with the somewhat joking greeting of, “Who’s in charge?”  Reactions vary, sometimes I get “You are”, or maybe, “not me”.  Then there is always someone who names another person in the room that is in charge.

I was thinking about this rhetorical question last week.  Who is really in charge?  For many of us it is our God, but on a day to day basis, we are in charge of our lives and the decisions we make.  Our faith, morals and values guide those choices, but we must act upon them. Our daily choices have results and consequences. We decide our attitude for the day.  How positively we impact others is a decision we make.  Individually, each day we choose what we eat, when or if we workout, and like these decisions we all are in control of our own productivity at work and at home.  Every single one of us is in charge.  The answer to the question is, “I am!”   

You are in Charge!

Consider your impact…

We all impact the lives of those around us.  It is inevitable, as is the way that people impact our lives each and every day.  The challenge is to impact people positively.  The greater challenge is to proactively impact people positively.  Never underestimate the impact you have on others just during normal daily encounters.  Try to consciously have a positive impact during those encounters.  We all have gifts.  We should strive to use those gifts in order to beneficially impact those around us.  Consider all of the uplifting ways you might be able to impact people during your day.

• Encourage
• Support
• Console
• Be an example
• Share
• Pray for
• Advise
• Teach
• Listen

Consider your impact on those around you, and do so positively.  What will your impact be today?

Undivided Attention

As humans, one of the greatest gifts we can give others is our undivided attention.  There is little as meaningful as totally focusing on another person and what they are saying or feeling.  Maybe that sounds simple, but consider what it really means.  With deadlines, meetings, email, texts and cell phones, how often do you really give someone your undivided attention? 

It is incredibly easy for our thoughts to drift to something we consider more urgent.  The phone in our pocket or purse is extremely tempting.  Our next meeting or appointment may seem much more important.  Giving someone our attention allows them to speak and truly be heard.  It allows them to feel positive about their relationship with us.  It allows you to focus on what you are being told and learn something from their perspective.  Focusing our attention is a foundational piece of personal relationships. 

This applies to all aspects of our lives.  It is especially true in our leadership roles and is even truer at home with spouses and children!  Try it, you might learn something, and you will be appreciated!

Beware of the pedestal…

In life we tend to put certain people up on pedestals.  We set those apart that we admire or idolize.  We hold them up, often to a higher standard or a loftier set of expectations.  I suppose it is human nature regarding people that make positive impressions on our lives and that can be dangerous.  Not everyone who positively influences our lives deserves such elevation.  Not everyone in positions of authority or popularity, deserve such special treatment.  In fact, most do not.  The risk is that when those people show us their weakness, or even their simply human side, we are devastated.  We find ourselves let down and disappointed.  Therein lies the risk of the pedestal.  We set ourselves up for disappointment when we place people on pedestals.  Most of the time people end up falling from their perch, often very hard.  There is nothing wrong with admiring people.  There is nothing wrong with emulating certain aspects of a persons’ character.  Just know that nobody is perfect.  Everyone is human, and as such, has flaws. Beware of the pedestal.

9/11

Sixteen years ago on this date The United States of America was changed forever.  Those old enough will remember exactly where they were that morning.  The attack, now known simply by the date of its occurrence as 9/11, was nothing like this country had ever seen before, and hopefully will never again.  The images were horrifying and unforgettable.  We were unified as a country and we rallied together in the subsequent days, weeks and months.  Unfortunately I feel like a lot of that unity has faded away, but that is a story for a different day. 

Earlier this year I had the opportunity to visit the 9II Memorial & Museum in New York City.  It is a fascinating collection of stories and memorabilia located at the base of the Twin Towers.  I found it to be incredibly well done, powerful, but somber and reverent.  My granddaughter, who was not even born at the date of the attacks, was riveted.  She came home with an understanding, and true feel for that tragedy that she will never get from a textbook.  I encourage you to visit if you have the chance.

Take a moment today to recall the events of sixteen years ago.  Think about the lives lost.  Ponder the unity that grew out of tragedy.  Reflect on the actions of the first responders.  Consider where we are in the war on terror.  Ensure that the events of that day are not forgotten by the next generation.  Most of all be proud of the great country we live in and the freedom we enjoy.