There is a song by the classic C&W singer and song-writer Willie Nelson with the title, “One in a row.”  Interesting use of a contradiction.  Yet, we often base our decisions, impressions, and make assumptions based on a single data point.  Here are a few examples:

1. Did you know that 70% of interviewers make up their minds on a candidate within the first 15 minutes of the interview (according to Entrepreneur Magazine)?  And of those, 5% made up their mind in the first minute!  Yes, it is clear that that first impression, whether or not it is fair or accurate, is hugely important.
2. We have all probably been in a situation in which trial-after-trial failed, but, when you finally obtained a successful or passing result, someone immediately declared, ‘It works!’”  We tend to agree with or accept that result that meets our desired outcome regardless of whether the data really support our conclusion.  That is why objectivity is so important in making important decisions.  One way I apply this is to ask someone else, not necessarily close to the problem, “Here is what I am thinking on this… Am I missing something?”  Getting the opinion of someone else or additional objective data can help ensure you are on the right track.
3. Have you heard of the “Dufus Syndrome”?  This is a conclusion about an individual you reach based on a single event or action.  Though that individual may perform like a rock star 1000 times since that event, he/she is still know as that person!  Somehow, we need to be able to refresh our viewpoints and use recent, objective data when viewing the contributions of individuals.  The same can be true for good impressions.  I have seen many times that once you conclude an individual is an “exceeding expectations” type of person, nothing in the future will change that.  They could sleep away the rest of their career and still be known as a superstar.  We must be objective!
4. Can we trust someone that is faithful one time in a row?  You’ve heard the saying, “Fool me once, shame on you.  Fool me twice, shame on me.”  Trust cannot be easily regained once lost.  However, over time, one step at a time, it can be restored.  We must be willing to forgive that person, though, that has proven they can be trusted.

One in a row… What can we learn from Willie today that will help us tomorrow?  Have a brilliant day!

 

Water is amazing!  It sustains life.  It provides energy that can move mountains.  It cools, heats, refreshes, and cleans.  It is the universal solvent.  It has truly unlimited capacity for good.  However, when uncontrolled, it also has unlimited power for damage.  We have all seen stories in the news about floods and the power of flowing water.  I have heard several stories lately of damage done when water found its way into basements.  Water even has power when unseen through the use of hydraulics.  In short, water is wonderful, but it can be scary.  It is beautiful, yet its presence can bring about dread and fear.

Each of us has that same power within us.  We can sustain life, provide energy, refresh, and we have unlimited capacity for good.  We can make a difference by what we do, what we say, or by how we treat others.  Yet, we each also have the capacity for harm.  We can damage others by what we do or what we say.  We can hurt others outwardly or in hidden ways.  We have unlimited power ready for good or bad.  When uncontrolled, we can bring about harm, fear, or dread.  But, when we exhibit self-control, we can change the life of another quicker than you can take a breath.

We are all like water… capable of good or capable of bad.  It all depends upon whether we live within the boundaries designed for good, or whether we operate without regard for those boundaries.  How we live determines to a very large extend whether we produce good or bad results.  We each have the capacity for both.  Which do you choose?

Have a great and productive day!

 

This is the fourth of our Friday Tributes.  Previously, we have paid tribute to friends, Mothers, and our plant-based employees.  Today, we highlight attributes of great leaders and thank those that are currently or have in the past contributed to our careers.

Everyone has an opinion as to what constitutes a great leader.  Some talk about the results they attain.  Others talk about how they achieve these results.  Still others talk about what they say or how they say it.  Below are a few of the key attributes of great leaders that I have observed over the course of my 38 years in industry:

1. Great leaders have a strong sense of service to others – Many believe that being a leader means others serve you.  The opposite is actually the true.  When you are put into a leadership position, it becomes imperative that you serve those you direct.  When you serve others, you promote greater collaboration and participation.  When you demonstrate that you will serve others, they become motivated to ensure the success of the team.  Leaders that serve others, create teams that serve each other.
2. Others willingly follow great leaders – Great leaders have great followers.  Everyone wants to work with and for a great leader.  When you know that you will be treated with respect, be motivated, and that your contributions are valued, you naturally want to follow such an individual.
3. Great leaders are trusted – A great leader has credibility… has integrity… is trusted by others.  A great leader is known as one that will always do the right thing in the right way.
4. Great leaders ensure that everyone knows the objective and gets everyone involved – There is never ambiguity around the mission (or goal or objective) when led by a great leader.  Being a great leader means you rally the team around a common target.  And, a great leader encourages the participation of all team members.  No one sits on the sideline when influenced by a great leader.
5. A great leader always treats others with respect – Being respected is critical for an individual to be “all in.”  A great leader treats others the way he/she would want to be treated in every circumstance.
6. Great leaders make those around them better – A great leader makes you a better person, a better teammate, and a better performer.  A great leader derives more from the team than could typically be expected by an average or good leaders.
7. A great leader always give credit to those that do the work – A great leader will never take the credit for the good work of the team.  Ensuring that others receive the appropriate recognition inspires higher enthusiasm and effort from team members.
8. Great leaders encourage others to do more than they thought possible – A great leader inspires us to achieve more than we would have otherwise.  A good leader gets good performance from team members.  But, a great leader inspires world-class performance.
9. A great leader rarely talks about their own contributions – When you speak to a great leader, you walk away learning more about yourself than you learn from the leader.
10. Everyone wants to work with or for a great leader – When you encounter that once-a-decade great leader, you naturally want to work with or for that individual.  Conversely, no one wants to work with or for a leader that is uninspiring, steals credit, or that cannot be trusted.
11. You tend to smile when you think of great leaders from your past – Enough said!  I quickly and easily smile thinking of those great leaders of my past.  Why do you think that is so?
12. A great leader is genuine, transparent and not prone to “spin” news to you – A great leader freely exhibits a vulnerability or “real” persona that simply makes you want to follow that kind of person.  You can depend on a great leader to give you the truth, all the time.
13. Great leaders produce more great leaders – One of the sure indicators of a great leader is to count the great leaders they have influenced.  You cannot consider yourself a great leader if you have never produced another.
14. A great leader will take a chance on you and give you the opportunity to stretch and grow – Most successful leaders can look back to the day that someone gave them a chance.  Perhaps, that chance was an unreasonable risk, given your experience at the time.  A great leader will go out on a limb to support a capable individual.  And, a great leader knows that people sometimes make mistakes.  When they do, such a leader uses it as a teaching moment, not one to degrade another.
15. Great leaders have high expectations, inspire hard work, but make the workplace fun – It is often said of Vince Lombardi, Hall-of-Fame Coach of the Green Bay Packers football team, “He was tough, but his players would run through a brick wall for him, if he asked them to.”  Great leaders have high expectations.  And, they exhibit a sense of humor that makes others comfortable and the time around each other enjoyable.
16. A great leader genuinely is interested in your career and willingly teaches those willing to learn – A great leader willingly passes along his/her own best practices.  They understand that for you to grow, they must take a personal interest and actively participate in your own learning.
17. A great leader respects you, your time, and a balanced life – A great leader will not waste your time or your effort and believes you contribute more when your life and work are in proper balance.  A great leader respects your time off work and understands that “first things come first.”
18. Great leaders will never expect individuals to do something they would not personally do – Great leaders lead by example.  They will never ask more of you than they are willing to give.  Often, a great leader to demonstrate early this concept by jumping in and doing the job no one else wants to do.  When this happens, the team members know that his/her walk is genuine.
19. A great leader always walks the talk – A great leader does what he/she will say.  They listen well and their actions align with their spoken philosophy.
20. Great leaders get great results due to the effort of others – Great results are usually the output of great leaders.  They understand what creates value and instill that in teammates.

When you think of a great leader from your past, who comes to mind?  Have you thanked that individual for advancing your own career or for showing you what it takes to be a great leader yourself?  Have you molded your own style to match what you saw in him/her?  Are you a better person for having worked with this great leader?

I can think of very good leaders in each of the seven companies for whom I have worked.  But, the number of great leaders is small in my experience.  A great leader may only come along every decade or so in your career.  So, when you encounter one of these rare individuals, cherish the time and learn everything you can from them.  Life is better because you encounter them.  They make your work more fulfilling, your contributions more valuable, and your life more complete.  In my 38 years in industry, the number of great leaders I have experienced is probably less than ten.  Certainly, I have worked with dozens or hundreds of good leaders, but great leaders come rarely and I have learned much from each of them.

Forward this tribute to a leader in your past that made a significant impact on you.  Tell them why you sent it and thank them for making a difference to you.  It will make their day.  And, to all the rest of us, let’s continue striving to be better leaders.  Let’s work to make a difference to our teammates.  The 20 attributes of great leaders highlighted above can serve as a great checklist as you refine and sharpen your own skills.

Thanks to each of you for make life better for all of us.  Have an awesome day!  It truly could be one of our best yet!

 

 

Several items to share today relating to safety:

1. Children in Hot Cars – I just saw again this week a story of a parent that accidently left a two-year old child buckled in a car seat thinking the child had been dropped off at the day care center.  The parent inadvertently left the child in the car all day thinking the normal routine stop at the day care had occurred.  Sadly, the child died and life changed forever for these parents.  Nothing breaks my heart more that hearing of parents losing a child.  For you parents or grandparents that routinely have children in the car with you, please establish a system that requires that you verify that you cannot possibly leave a child in the car.  Setting a reminder on your dashboard, or using a mirror, or some other positive technique to verify that there is no child left behind might prevent a similar tragedy in your family.
2. Push-button Car Starters – There have been a number of articles warning lately about the push-button starters on many newer cars.  There have been numerous examples where the driver was distracted and forgot to turn off the car in the garage and individuals in the home died from carbon monoxide poisoning.  I have also heard examples of individuals inadvertently leaving their cars on all day at work.  It can happen!  So, once again, establish a normal routine that requires that you verify that the car is off before exiting.  Establishing a system that requires positive verification is considered a “best practice.”
3. Eye Protection at Home – We all know that eye protection is required in the workplace when performing risky activities.  But, how many of you routinely use eye protection at home when doing equally risky tasks?  I have a good friend that lost an eye while mowing his lawn.  He hit a rock that bounced off a tree back and hit his eyeball.  He had several surgeries, but lost sight in the eye.  He now struggles to do many of the tasks he formerly did routinely, such as play golf, drive at night, and read.  Honestly, mowing or weed trimming at home without eye protection is not worth it.
4. Skin Protection – Well, it is summertime again.  So, it is time to get back into the routine of using sun screen and/or wearing a hat outside in the sun.  Take it from me… protecting your skin is worth it.  My wife and I now have annual check-ups from a dermatologist to detect and remove suspicious skin lesions.  Each of us has had to have items removed or treated.  Start early protecting your skin!

 

Please be safe at work and at home!  Have a fabulous day!

A good friend and I used to talk about the need for common sense in our world today. We even decided to create the “Court of Common Sense” whereby individuals with disagreements could outline their concerns, pay a small fee, then allow us to make the final, binding decision. We still believe this would avoid much of the expense and concern with living in our modern world. Just think… the Court of Common Sense could arbitrate many issues currently consuming our court system, it would eliminate some needless disagreements between neighbors, and end much of the drama that we read about in the news every day. Our thought was and continues to be that if everyone would agree to simply live by “common sense”, the world would be a simpler and happier place.

Just what is common sense? Leonardo da Vinci described it this way:

“Common sense is that which judges the things given to it by other senses.” – Leonardo da Vinci

Common sense can also be defined as the conclusion drawn by reasonable people viewing the available objective data at their disposal. Or, in plain English, it is simply the right thing to do based on what we now know. Why did common sense become so rare or complex? Maybe it started because everything must now be viewed in our litigious society through the eyes of a potential lawsuit. For example, a lawn mower company was once sued because the instructions for use did not explicitly say, “Do not attempt to pick up the lawnmower and use it as a hedge trimmer.” If an item like this was brought before the Court of Common Sense, the suing individual would be thrown out of court during the first minute of arguments. Lack of instructions do not excuse stupidity!

Common sense to us can often mean that we pause, step back, and ask, “What are we really trying to solve? Do I have enough information right now to tell me the answer or at least send me in the right direction?” Or, more plainly, “What is the non-stupid answer to that question?” In short, the best answer is often the most simple, least complex one.

So, the challenge for us today is to ask the question, “What would the Court of Common Sense say?” If the answer comes quickly and obviously, you usually have the answer needed.

Have an awesome one!

This is the third in our series of Friday Tributes.  Earlier, we paid tribute to friends and mothers.  Today, we want to recognize and thank our colleagues that work in manufacturing plants.  Perhaps I have a slight bias, but I think the challenges of working in a manufacturing facility are unique and deserve special recognition.  I often say, “Unless you have worked in a manufacturing plant, you simply cannot understand what it takes day-in and day-out to serve our customers with the right products at the right time.”  Certainly, the same could be said of our corporate- or field-based colleagues, but today we give a tip of the hat to those of you in our manufacturing plants.

What is so special about working in a manufacturing plant?  I’m glad you asked that question… let’s look at a few of the reasons.  A plant-based employee:

1. Often, cannot make plans for the weekend until it arrives.  It is often difficult knowing if you will have the weekend off until you know how well the line has run that week.  Thus, planning personal or family events is often very challenging.
2. Everything depends on production volume.  When volume is up, the plant runs more efficiently, you can afford needed enhancements, and job security is strong.  When volume is down, you are always concerned about whether it is a trend or temporary decline.
3. Work conditions are often difficult.  Some plant areas are not air-conditioned or they are cold in winter.  In some areas, you are constantly dealing with crowding, dust, fumes, or fatigue.  Plant work is hard work!
4. The need for decisions is fast-paced.  In a plant, you often must make split second decisions that could impact product, service, or quality.  Some individuals in plants must make dozens of these decisions every day… and, they need to be right decisions.
5. Most plant functions are audited constantly.  Plant employees understand that every document they sign, every entry they make, and every comment recorded is open to review and scrutiny.  The pressure of this constant oversight adds to the stress of a plant-based position.
6. Plant-based employees are constantly asked to work more efficiently, faster, and with less cost.  The challenge of ever-increasing requirements is often a heavy burden for plant-based employees.
7. Plant colleagues often are not fully recognized for the great work they consistently perform.  Some of our plants are remote and it is difficult for senior management personnel to personally see their good work and the way they respond to challenges.  Their great work often goes unseen by those outside the plant.

Despite these challenges, plant positions are among the most enjoyable I have had in my career.  There is a comradery and teamwork at a plant that is hard to match in any other setting.  You tend to rely on your each other more simply because it is essential in such a fast-paced environment.  I can say this without hesitation, plant jobs are the hardest, but, possibly, among the most satisfying jobs in any company.

Anyway, to all of you that are plant-based employees; this one is for you!  Thanks for all you do and have one of those very best days yet!

 

Most days, The Porch has a story to tell, a point to make, or something intended to make us ponder how we can continuously improve our company, our lives, or our skills. Today’s edition of The Porch is none of that. It is simply a time to read and enjoy, perhaps even smile. As I have said before, much of life can be explained by Country and Western music. Just to prove it, I have listed below a number of actual song titles. I am hoping that none of these speak to real life in your world:

The Best Of The Worst Country and Western Song Titles

1. Her Teeth Were Stained, But Her Heart Was Pure

2. How Can I Miss You If You Won’t Go Away?

3. How Can You Believe Me When I Say I Love You When You Know I’ve Been A Liar All My Life?

4. I Keep Forgettin’ I Forgot About You

5. I Would Have Writ You A Letter, But I Couldn’t Spell Yuck!

6. I’d Rather Have A Bottle In Front Of Me Than A Frontal Lobotomy

7. I’m Just A Bug On The Windshield Of Life

8. If You Don’t Leave Me Alone, I’ll Go And Find Someone Else Who Will

9. If You Leave Me, Can I Come Too?

10. Mama Get The Hammer (There’s A Fly On Papa’s Head)

11. My Every Day Silver Is Plastic

12. My Wife Ran Off With My Best Friend, And I Sure Do Miss Him

13. Oh, I’ve Got Hair Oil On My Ears And My Glasses Are Slipping Down, But Baby I Can See Through You

14. She Made Toothpicks Out Of The Timber Of My Heart

15. When You Leave Walk Out Backwards, So I’ll Think You’re Walking In

16. You Done Tore Out My Heart And Stomped That Sucker Flat

17. You Were Only A Splinter As I Slid Down The Bannister Of Life

18. You’re The Reason Our Baby’s So Ugly

19. I’m So Miserable Without You It’s Like Having You Here

20. Learning To Live Again Is Killing Me

21. The Last Word In Lonesome Is “me”

22. You Stuck My Heart In an Old Tin Can and Shot It Off a Log

23. The Next Time You Throw That Fryin’ Pan, My Face Ain’t Gonna Be There

24. I Don’t Know Whether to Come Home or Go Crazy

25. I Meant Every Word That He Said

26. Tennis Must Be Your Racket ‘Cause Love Means Nothin’ To You

27. Who You Gonna Believe, Me Or Your Lying Eyes?

Thanks for all you do! Have an awesome day!

Have you ever heard the saying, “Today is so important that you’re exchanging a day of your life for it?” I’m not sure who said it, but it can make you pause to consider whether you are adding or creating value today. Today on The Porch, we focus on a related quote by Henry David Thoreau. He was an American author, poet, philosopher, abolitionist, naturalist, tax resister, development critic, surveyor, and historian of the 19th century. Needless to say, he was an interesting guy. Nonetheless, let’s look at our quote for today:

“The price of anything is the amount of life you exchange for it.” Henry David Thoreau.

Certainly, life was different in the 1800’s. But, this quote is full of wisdom for us today. Here are a few points of perspective from me:

1. We should look at every activity in our life as though it has a price tag connected to it

2. Our lives are a series of exchanges – we exchange time and effort for value (or non-value)

3. We have a limited amount of life to exchange – we do not know when our ability to exchange life will end

The other way at looking at Thoreau’s quote is in terms of return-on-investment (or ROI). In monetary terms, it is easy to use ROI to direct our decisions. However, in terms of life, calculating ROI is much more difficult. As an example, what is the ROI for spending an evening alone with your spouse versus going to a baseball game with your friends? Or, what is the ROI for choosing your child’s soccer game over working an extra two hours on a project not due until next week? In short, we spend our lives making choices about the relative ROI for our activities. So, when you consider it that way, are you making the correct ROI decisions? Do your decisions on how you spend your time typically consider only the short-term gain or do you consider the long-term impact?

When I personally consider Thoreau’s comment on life and time, it makes me consider that the time that I pour into the lives of others has a high ROI versus the time I spend on things. Investing my time on activities that make a difference for others will always trump time spent on other activities. Now, certainly, I don’t always make these choices wisely, but it does make me re-think what I do and how I spend my free time. My personal goal for every day is to, in some way, add value to someone else’s life… do something that might turn a bad day into a good day for someone. In my world, I think this exchange is always worth the price of time that I pay. How about you?

Perhaps, this could be your very best day yet! You just never know.

No matter how good of a day I have had, when I am at the airport and it is time for boarding, they make me feel like a loser! It goes something like this:

“First, we would like to board our Elite, Platinum, and Superstar members. Please, everyone, clear the aisles to allow these truly special people direct access to the boarding gate. After all, these individuals are the cream of the crop, the best that society can offer, so we all need to treat them with the respect due them. Next, we’ll board our Gold members, our First-Class passengers, and any VIP in the gate area. Don’t forget, we have a uniformed officer and judge in the area to ensure that no one enters the gate that does not belong to this amazing group. After that, those of you that haven’t quite made it in life yet – you Silver members, airline employees, and anyone that does not drive a convertible sports car – may board. Please, do not rush or crowd that special group boarding ahead of you! Finally, after all of those passengers have safely boarded, the rest of you – those with zero status that matters to us – can come aboard. At this airline, we refer to you folks as beginners, has-beens, and wanna-bees. In short, you folks are losers. But, even losers deserve a chance to fly occasionally. So, when the coast is clear, we’ll let you scramble for a seat and overhead space.”

Have you ever felt that way? Then again, most of you are probably in one of those first few groups.

Isn’t it amazing how people (or society) judges individuals as either winners or losers? Despite this, I think we all know that there is a difference in individuals that have a winning attitude and approach to work or life versus those that always see themselves as losers, no matter the circumstances. We need to be winners! We need to all have a winning attitude. I thought it would be helpful to include a few quotes that help differentiate individuals with a winning approach to life versus those that do not.

1. “History has demonstrated that the most notable winners usually encountered heartbreaking obstacles before they triumphed. They won because they refused to become discouraged by their defeats.” – B. C. Forbes

2. “The winners in life think constantly in terms of I can, I will, and I am. Losers, on the other hand, concentrate their waking thoughts on what they should have or would have done, or what they can’t do.” – Denis Waitley

3. “Losers make promises they often break. Winners make commitments they always keep.” – Denis Waitley

4. “Winners embrace hard work. They love the discipline of it, the trade-off they’re making to win. Losers, on the other hand, see it as punishment. And that’s the difference.” – Lou Holtz

5. “I have to introduce the part of me that feels like a winner to the part of me convinced I’m a loser, and see if they can’t agree to exist somewhere closer to the middle.” ― Lauren Graham

6. “Failures sit around and wait for good things to come to them; winners work until good things happen to them, and still continue to work.” ― Edmond Mbiaka

So, do these quotes about winners exemplify you and your approach? I think being a winner is a choice. How can we shift our thinking to one of action, of confidence, and of perseverance? Where are you today in the boarding gate of life? How about let’s jump to the head of the line?

Thanks for all you do! Let’s have a terrific day!

This coming Sunday is Mother’s Day in the US. It is a day set aside to pay tribute to all the mothers that have made a difference in our lives. Thus, it is only fitting that we do the same this Friday on The Porch for the second of our tribute Friday series. You’ll recall that we began this series last week with our Tribute to Friends.

My own Mother died in 1997. She was a very young 62 years old at the time. But, she had a very important impact on my own life… what I believe, what I do, and why I do it. Those of you that still have your Mom, consider yourself blessed. Treat her special because when she is gone, a day will come when you would give anything for just one more hour with her. For those of you with Mom still in your life, this weekend would be a great time to express your love and appreciation for the impact she has had in your life.

A good friend of mine recently prepared a few thoughts of tribute to her own Mother. I’m sure each one of us could share similar sentiments. Thank you, my friend, for sharing your tribute:

As I grow older I have a deeper sense of respect and admiration for my mom. Looking back over the years I realize I learned many things by watching her in action. So in observance of Mother’s Day, I’m sharing a few of those lessons learned from the fabulous woman I call Mom.

1- Life’s not fair; get over it.

Checkers, chess, Scrabble, card games, basketball, whatever the game, my mom always seemed to win when we played. On more than one occasion I complained that is wasn’t fair that she always won. She never changed her strategy and never gave in to let me win. Her message to me was consistent. She would say, “If you want to win, you have to practice and get better; nothing in this life is handed to you.” She would always encourage me to do my best and would share her insights and motivated me to keep practicing. In the end, when I did finally win a game of checkers, it was a sweet victory because I knew I had earned it.

2- Study hard, work hard; it’s worth it in the long run

Mom was a math major by degree and a teacher by trade. She worked in a rural county school system where she could have easily been an 8 to 3:30 employee but she was never content with the status quo. She started her Master’s work when I was young and I can still remember the long hours driving to and from the university so she could attend night classes and all day on Saturday for computer labs. She was one of the first to school (early tutoring for students if needed and staying late for math team competition practice) and last to leave. She recently retired as one of the highest paid and highest degreed in the school district but more importantly she still receives words of thanks and praise from former students for her dedication to the job and to them.

3- There are no failures in life, only learning experiences (the summer of brown grass)

One June afternoon Mom made a decision to cut the grass “super short” so as to cut down on the number of times required to mow over the growing season- efficiency at its finest she thought. Although we lived in a rural county our house was located on the main road into and out of town and we did have a few neighbors. You can imagine the shock when after a couple of days the full 2 acre tract was full of brown dead grass. The grass finally recovered next spring.

4- Details are important

Mom, as a math major, loves numbers and problem solving from calculus to probability to algebra. At least on two occasions that I can recall she has visited her local bank branch to correct them regarding her checking account balance- once for 1 penny and once for 2 cents (the bank apologized both times). I attribute this as my early motivator for a career in QA.

5- You have talent; use it

My mom is a baker- breads, cakes, pies, and rolls- and she’s excellent at it. During the holidays we delivered a variety of cakes and goodies out to others in the community. I also remember her delivering hundreds of cinnamon rolls to the hourly workers at the local quarry just to let them know she appreciated the hard work they did.

To all of our mothers, thank you for working so hard to balance what is best for your family, while doing so much else for so many. As difficult as it is, it is clear that you are doing your very best. Enjoy this weekend!