To Serve well

Serving with Excellence for a Life of Excellence

Workplace

What does it look like to stand together?

This is a truly wonderful season, full of hope and excitement as graduates of all ages cross the stage. Graduation represents an accomplishment worth celebrating, but I believe the best part is that they offer the opportunity to take us to the next level of our adventure. New seasons require higher levels of support, so the thought of “standing” together is where my mind is today.

Taking a stand with or for someone is one of the highest levels of service we can provide to those we love.

So, what does that look like exactly? I thought some examples may be helpful to get your creative juices rolling (Of course I know everyone would love to hear some of yours so please add them below!):

Taking a stand for or with could be…

Advocating for someone you work with – Sending an email to their leader to let them know what a difference they make in your day to day endeavors is something I believe is simple, yet supremely significant.

Ensuring support is there for a young man or woman to achieve their personal dreams – What if we all asked the next new high school or college graduate we met what we could do to help them at this stage in their life? Life is absolutely packed with chances to reach out and help someone by introducing them to the right person, or even a book that may change their life.

Taking action on a unified issue – Who in your circle is fighting the good fight over something that’s important to them and that you agree with Perhaps it’s a social justice issue, or perhaps it’s as simple as someone trying to push forward a plan to improve wellness in the workplace. Whatever it is, don’t be afraid to jump in and lend a hand, your voice and energy.

We all thrive when we stand together. I hope that you take a small – or a large – stand this week… I know that when we do that, we will also RISE TOGETHER. Cheering you all on.

Live in the arena

“It is not the critic who counts; not the man who points out how the strong man stumbles, or where the doer of deeds could have done them better. The credit belongs to the man who is actually in the arena, whose face is marred by dust and sweat and blood; who strives valiantly; who errs, who comes short again and again … who at the best knows in the end the triumph of high achievement, and who at the worst, if he fails, at least fails while daring greatly.”

Theodore Roosevelt

Want to level up your personal growth? Find a bit over an hour, log into Netflix and be prepared to actively take notes. You will laugh, you will nod in understanding and you will be changed. In her Netflix special, Dr. Brene Brown, says something to the tune of “there is my life before this quote (above) and my life after.” I could say the same thing about this show. Incredible.

She talks about “engineering smallness” in her life because of her fear to step into her own power and play big. (Frankly, that’s its own headline!)

She shares incredible data that proves that if we are to achieve anything – from career success to love – we will indeed fall, get our asses kicked, and experience heartbreak. (Ouch!)

She talks about being hard-wired for belonging, and our need to speak our truth and not betray ourselves for other people.

She educates about the need for us to be vulnerable…even in the workplace. Especially if we are to develop inclusivity, equity and diversity and have uncomfortable conversations that ultimately have the power to bring us to unity. (Folks… we need to be vulnerable… this is critical for our generation.)

That, my friends, encompasses only about 5 percent of the content. I truly hope that you will make it a priority to step into this great message. And if you’ve already caught her Netflix special, I’d love to hear about your takeaways!

The “arena” can for sure be intimidating – scary even. The “arena” is also that place where we grow, thrive and shine like no other place. You all are champions my friends! Cheering you on always.

Cultivate something that brings joy

Rewind! This is an adapted post from 2017. Happy Easter weekend!

I love the idea of community gardens. If you aren’t familiar, community gardens are managed by groups of people, generally to meet a community’s needs. Sometimes that need is because the area is in a food desert and other times it’s education. No matter the reason, it is a positive initiative that brings great value, and improves health and happiness.

A few years ago, our church did a sermon series around the idea of “cultivate,” which got me thinking about areas in my life where cultivation is needed.

“Cultivate” has a double meaning. One is about preparing and using land for crops or gardening. We do this by tilling, plowing, fertilizing, mulching, watering, weeding… the type of hard work that community gardeners know all too well. The second meaning is to “acquire or develop” a quality, sentiment or skill. (Also hard work)

The two definitions are connected.

At the time, I associated the series with the word “joy”. This association struck me as an area I needed to focus on during that season of my life… to develop … cultivate if you will. I’m sure you know by now that I consider joy to be important. I feel so strongly that JOY is something we can have but that it often requires cultivating, especially during hard seasons.

You might have an area of your life that you want to cultivate, and I encourage you to pursue that. I am hopeful some of you will join me in generating some joy in our homes, neighborhoods and workplaces! What can you do today to elevate and cultivate joy? This is a terrific weekend to do just that!

Simple Thoughts Sunday: A game-changing strategy

Wow – do I ever need to remember this. Honestly, I always have, but sometimes I really need it – like when all of the “stuff” that has been in the news this week strikes.

The scripture, found in James 1, actually has a bit more to say: “You must all be quick to listen, slow to speak and slow to get angry.” I’m not much of the “angry” type, but the rest of that would be a solid idea for a tattoo (insert lol). This is truly profound guidance, whether it’s in a relationship or in the workplace, or simply “cocktail party” conversation.

So, how about you? Anyone else find this timely? One thing that I’m learning is the importance of not only being slow to respond, but in asking really thoughtful questions. Asking the right questions, with the intent to learn and understand can be just the game changer you need to elevate a conversation. With a life goal of “serving well” and truly coming alongside one another to make each better, this is a must-have strategy.

Praying for you all as you enter our first full week of March. Let’s go!

Driving toward a growth mindset

Happy January 31st! The month felt like it was 1,000 days long and yet, for some reason, it’s hard to believe the first month of 2019 is over.

I feel like I’m still putting the ship in order for an amazing year. How about you? Did you hit your “must-have” list and generate some momentum heading into the rest of the quarter? How’s your health game going? Setting up plans to deepen those relationships? Strengthening your financial position? How about your career – be it managing the “castle” (aka, home), hustling in the workplace or the best career, known as “retirement? Did you make progress in leveling up in those areas? What about just surviving (which is a perfectly respectable goal!)?

When I saw this message, I knew immediately it had to reach a greater audience. For those who want to optimize their best life for this very season, it is critical to stay on task and intentionally build pathways to achieve what we hope will bring us closer to those goals.

As you close out this month and launch in to February, I hope this will inspire you to make the days and moments count. I pray your month is chock full of celebrations, intention and pure happiness, no matter what that may be for you!

Special note: February is Go Red month for the American Heart Association. Heart disease is the leading cause of death for all Americans. I hope you will join me in wearing Red tomorrow on Friday for national Go Red Day and together raise awareness! For more information, go to the AHA website. Being informed saves lives.

It’s time to spread joy

“It’s time to spread joy” is one of my favorite go-to concepts in the workplace.

It’s a reminder I started years ago (no doubt borrowing the idea from some brilliant person.) to ensure we were all aware of how the days can go by without recognizing those around us who are shining brightly during the day to day grind. On a routine basis, sending out a friendly reminder for everyone to take a few minutes to reach out, thank, or otherwise acknowledge at least 3 people is all it takes to seriously elevate the world around you.  

It occurred to me, that I haven’t done it lately, and that this can be done really as a solo act. I think I’ll put a reminder in my phone to do just this every week or two. It is a basic human need to want to achieve purpose. For someone to take a moment to throw a virtual “confetti” parade by sharing a few kind words  on someone’s behalf is a game changer not only for them but for the energy it provides you and the environment. 

In this busy season, I hope that JOY is spread all around our communities, in homes, work places, and everywhere you find yourself.  

Elevating your game takes wonder (oh, and maybe a little pain)

Elevating your game, “leveling up” or taking ground… all require grit, guts and all a heavy dose of creativity and for sure wonder. Many times, that requires us to get a bit bruised in the process.

The quote in the photo refers to Harry Houdini, the world-famous magician. He forever upped his game and worked toward creating genius in his work. In this story, he was trying to figure out how a peer walked a tightrope… he unfortunately learned the hard way (i.e. losing his front teeth) that there are better ways to do this.

Of course you get the main part of that story, but what about the reference to “wonder?” Did you catch that? In Gino’s recent book, ‘Rebel Talent,’ she embarks on just why being a rebel is important. One part I love is her chapter educating us to always strive to have people on our teams (including ourselves) that generate wonder. Those people on the team that may seem to be drifting off, coming up with a different way to look at “things” to help us to see a different “angle.” Pointing out the “what ifs” is an important contribution to any impactful team or project. I would say, even at home.

She shares a story of her toddler son wanting to put food coloring in his cereal. His dad immediately saying, “we don’t do that,” and then their collective awakening: “why not?” Why can’t we have colored milk? Who made up the rule that this is not a good thing? What a simple yet perfect example. How often do we say, “We can’t do that,” or “we don’t do that in this family,” or “our rules don’t allow that in the workplace?” etc.

We should carefully question our tendency to shut down creativity and empowerment in many situations. After all, wonder is often what takes us to the next level. Breaking the “rules” and pushing boundaries (within reason of course…) is what brought us the light bulb, the mobile phone, Facebook, Uber, Amazon… you get the point.

Get out the crayons and paper and allow yourself and your family/work place/community group to exercise their creativity and wonder.  It may get messy, but you might just make something beautiful!

How do you win the war?

What a great question. I mean, who really wants to go to war anyway? The truth is that we all go to battle many days of our lives. The battles on the ground to bring value to our workplace, to our community and to our families.

I did a little research on a well-known, French military leader, Napoleon Bonaparte, who led several campaigns. Here is my absolute favorite quote I could find about him (for the record, I believe that this behavior is the absolute reason he won most battles…):

“Bonaparte would generally rise up sweaty, dirty and covered in gunpowder.”

Here’s what I love: He was in the mud with his team. He wasn’t hiding in an office or in a meeting. He was there, shirt sleeves rolled up, in the mix. That’s huge in my experience.

“He also made an effort to remember his soldiers’ names and visited their campfires before battle, chatting with them about home and expressing confidence that they would triumph over the enemy.”

Here’s what I love: Goodness, why is this so hard for some leaders? We have to know the people around us – their names for sure and hopefully something important to them (their family, their pets, their hobby, their experiences). In addition to the whole “know their names” behavior, he expressed confidence in his team. Every single person I know needs encouragement and needs to know that their leader believes in them. EVERY SINGLE PERSON.

In Bonaparte’s army, soldiers that came from humble backgrounds could rise through the ranks to be leaders, as Bonaparte himself had done. (Taken from Francesca Gino’s ‘Rebel Talent’)

Here’s what I love: The background here is that in that time, only the elite were able to be promoted. Not on Bonaparte’s team… Politics were not in his playbook, but rewarding grit was. That, in my opinion, is spot-on good leadership!

So for today, let’s win the battles with a lot of love and a focus on service and honor to the people within our ranks. Let us be like Bonaparte and work alongside our teams for the best results. That, my friends, is true service!

What if, today I…

(Rewind! This is a timely and relevant rewind post from 2017 to help get your mind in the right space as we top off the week!)

If you are in the workplace and have anything to do with marketing, you might follow Seth Godin.

He has daily, short blogs that offer up simple ideas on pushing you to the next level in creativity. His recent post caught my attention, and my mind took it another direction. His title, “Three simple and difficult steps” offered this:

  1. Get Smarter. Hurry. (Technology and life is moving fast)
  2. Solve interesting problems.
  3. Care. More.

His thinking was that most people do one of these, but what would happen if you became the type of person and does all three? You might add leverage and value and ultimately choices to your life.

I thought it was good, but here’s where my mind went with it…

What if today we set a goal to accomplish something that really impacted our life/world? What if today was the day that we did not operate our daily routine, but instead choose to take a new route to work, craft a personal mission statement outlining what we’d love to do right now, and set forth a plan to make it so?

One day can be so impactful, yet we often let our days become routine and settle in. I like settling in, but I LOVE feeling energized and like I’m really doing something important. That one is much better! How about you?

What can you do today to UP YOUR LEVERAGE? To get smarter, or change paths or to just be a part of a nicer and better world? My guess is that we can ALL DO SOMETHING.

Excellence is in the “small stuff”

Excellence: The Triumph of Humanity (Tom Peters)

“Janet Dugan, a health care architect, took inspiration from her recent experience having an MRI scan. While she was lying still and waiting, she noticed a small mirror that had been placed below the head support piece. It was angled so that she could see through the barrel to the radiology technician and make eye contact with him. ‘What a small thing,  and yet what a difference it made. I felt less alone. I was connected to another person at the very moment I needed support…  I firmly believe in the power of design to contribute to the healing process – that architecture can shape events and transform lives. But that day, in that experience, the thing that really gave me comfort was a tiny mirror about as big as a Band-Aid.”  – Tim Leberecht, The Business Romantic, via Tom Peter’s opening in his new book, The Excellence Dividend.

I am a huge Tom Peters fan. And to me, he is the single greatest leadership expert of our time. He is 75 now and smarter than ever. His new book is an instant classic and we will all be better for it.

Today, as you think through your work week, I hope you will remember this story which is literally the first few words of the book. I hope it sinks in and that you look inward to your life, home, workplace and community and see what “details” or “small stuff” you could impact that makes the difference between “OK,” and “EXCELLENCE,” or even better, pure delight.

I am “delighted” when the local farm, Campo Lindo, (whose eggs I get at Whole Foods when the farmer’s market isn’t in season), has a little note in the carton telling me what is going on at the farm. Probably my favorite example is from my mother in law, who cared for the boys when they were young while we were working. Every single morning she would give them a typed up menu including a list of their favorite breakfast options, a la “Grandma’s Kitchen,” for them to circle their choice for the day. How cool is that? I am sure that they will never forget that extra attention to detail. I know I won’t. Excellence, details, and “small stuff” make all the difference.

Dive in to that idea today!