—The Shawshank Redemption (Tim Robbins)
“Stay Hungry. Stay Foolish.”
—Steve Jobs, Apple
“You are the storyteller of your own life, and you can create your own legend or not.”
—Isabel Allende
“A leader is a dealer in hope.”
—Napoleon
“Nothing is so contagious as enthusiasm.”
—Samuel Taylor Coleridge
“A man without a smiling face must not open a shop.”
—Chinese proverb
“Before you can inspire with emotion, you must be swamped with it yourself. Before you can move their tears, your own must flow. To convince them, you must yourself believe.”
—Winston Churchill
“If your actions inspire others to dream more, learn more, do more and become more, you are a leader.”
—John Quincy Adams
“A year from now you may wish you had started today.”
—Karen Lamb
Curiosity
115. If You Have to Ask … Then Ask (and Ask and Ask).
“I don’t invest in anything I don’t understand.”
—Warren Buffett* **
(*Consider: Should you carry this quote around on a card??)
(**Buffett also said that if you need a computer to understand a company’s numbers—don’t invest.)
Is there a better way to sum up how we might have avoided the current economic crisis than Warren Buffett’s simple philosophy? Probably not. (Though even Buffett made some pretty sizable mistakes—which he, unlike so many others, is the first to admit.)
One practical implication that I urge you to turn into a 2010-and-beyond set of related resolutions:
“I shall lead the league in Asking Dumb Questions.”
“I shall become Questioner-in-Chief.”
“I shall become ‘Dumb Question’-er-in-Chief.”
“I shall fill in all blanks—I’ll ask until I ‘get it’ well enough to repeat it.”
“I shall persist until I ‘get it,’ regardless of how dense it may make me appear at the time.”
“I shall fight my ever-so-deep-seated instincts, and repeatedly say, ‘Could you say that again, a little more slowly?’”
“I shall evaluate others in part on their skill and persistence at … Asking Dumb Questions.”
“We shall hire in part on perceived or measured Instinctive Curiosity.” (For every slot.)
Swallow your pride, especially if you’re a “top” boss. Ask until you understand! The “dumber” the question, the better! If the askee is irritated at you or decides you’re less smart than she thought, because of your “stupid” questions, well, consider that Total Victory!
Ask!
Ask!
Ask!
(Then ask again!)
Rule: Above all, “sweat the details”—the weird, incomprehensible “little” thing that appears in Footnote #7 to Appendix C that just doesn’t make sense to you—probe until you find out what it means.
If I’m any good at this, I owe it all to Allen Puckett, my first boss at McKinsey & Co. Allen is clearly on the “Top 5” list of “smartest guys I’ve been privileged to work with.” I watched Allen-the-consultant (aren’t we supposed to be on top of things?) ask Incredibly Dumb Questions to CEOs who were paying him a ton of money—only to find out that Mr. $50-million-a-year CEO was clueless or misinformed. (Thanks, Allen.)
Action: Start this at your next meeting. Today. It’ll doubtless be awkward—but soldier on. (You might make it a game—and a damn valuable one. For example, at the next meeting you run, offer in advance a banana as a reward to the person asking the dumbest question—illuminating or not. Remember, most “dumb” questions are in fact pretty dumb—that is, have straightforward answers. But 1 in 20, or 1 in 10, or 1 in 50 “dumb” questions reveal the Mother Lode of Comprehension.)
116. Reward DNK (Do Not Know).
Bosses and “brilliant” staffers are very prone to falling into the trap of not admitting when they don’t know the answer or have trouble with the concept. (CEOs pocketing $75,000,000 bonuses didn’t grock the superderivatives served up by their University of Chicago math Ph.D.s—welcome to Recessionus Gargantuas.) The boss thinks, “I’m supposed to know that”—and is loath to admit that he doesn’t. He rarely lies outright, but he is very inclined to obfuscate his ignorance. So, too, those “brilliant” staffers who are paid large sums to be brilliant, not to not know.
Fact is, we should not only readily (gleefully?—“that’s what I hired you for”) admit when we do not know something, but also actively seek out things we do not know, or “DNKs.” Perhaps start meetings by asking, “What are our DNKs here?” (And end the meeting the same way.)
We can, and should, make it positive … and praise-worthy … for anyone to say “DNK” when he/she/you/me DNK. Of course, that doesn’t imply rewarding “I didn’t bother to …” laziness, but instead to reward truth telling, Big Time, especially when it comes to gaping holes in our knowledge. Publicly cheer the person who admits—in front of a boss—that he or she “does not know” the facts here, or the answer to this or that. In fact, you might make a game (a serious game!) out of identifying the “DNKs” regarding any analysis or proposed action.
Frankly, good inventories of DNKs may be far more important to success than inventories of DKs. (Do knows, obviously.)
(NB: All good things can be taken too far. As boss, you have to take care and create an atmosphere in which the “pursuit of DNKs” does not deteriorate into a string of “gotcha moments”—as it did at McKinsey.)
117. Work the Watercooler—Or: Are You Gossiping Enough?
Big brains!
Logical thinking!
Analytic capability!
The heart of the human difference!
Right?
Wrong!
The heart of the “human difference”?
Gossip!
The human brain is about nine times bigger, on a body-size-adjusted basis, than that of mammals in general. The reason is fascinating—and mostly counterintuitive. We are, of course, a long way from being the strongest of the species. So how did we win out over the Truly Big Dudes with claws? Answer: Not by intellectual skill at calculating warhead (spear) trajectories. But by joining together in groups and outwitting and out-organizing the brutes. (Management!) And what brought these groups of humans together?
A brain that grew to accommodate: Gossip!
As British evolutionary psychologist Robin Dunbar puts it, our brains expanded almost entirely to store social information. (Relationship stuff!!!) To make a long, long story short short, this “relationship stuff” allowed us to manufacture the “social glue” that would underpin cohabiting in sizable bands; by developing social cohesion skills, we improved or maximized what we now call “organizational effectiveness” … and became Kings and Queens of the jungle and beyond.
My point here is to suggest that anyone, as so many (esp. males, esp. technically trained males with MBAs) do, who dismisses or diminishes “relationship stuff” and “communication stuff”—and in particular “political stuff” —as “the soft stuff” is not only an ignorant damn fool, but also denying the essence of what it means to be human.
Message I: A (very) high share of “wasted” time spent on relationship development provides by far the highest “return on investment.” (E.g.: In my experience, it’s mostly fools who “don’t suffer fools [‘time wasters’] lightly.”)
Message II: So go “waste”! (And, often, reap.) (NB: I wasn’t born yesterday. Of course there is a lot of “political bullshit.” But be very careful: One “no-nonsense” man’s ire with “annoying bullshit” is another woman’s “Winding Road to Riches and Power.”)
(Source for most of this: No Two Alike: Human Nature and Human Individuality, by Judith Rich Harris.)
Learning
118. Making the Grade: Lifelong Learning Is a Mission- Statement Must.
&
nbsp; “The only thing you cannot afford not to do is learn.”
—Hank Paulson, former U.S. Secretary of the Treasury
Gerson Barbosa, a commenter on my blog, said, “The mission statement of Johns Hopkins includes ‘Cultivate their capacity for lifelong learning, to foster independent and original research, and to bring the benefits of discovery to the world.’”
That gave me a double jolt.
(One of those … “I knew that. Yes, it is that important.”)
In our rapidly gyrating world, learning-for-life is no longer an option; it’s a professional life (or death) necessity—as more and more are beginning to realize. This is true of you at age 17 or 27 or 47 or 67—and God knows it’s true of my great pal, this book’s dedicatee, Warren Bennis, voracious in the depth and breadth of his quest for knowledge in his mid-80s!
(Talk about someone who puts you through your paces! You could still hear the echo of the scrape of our chairs on the restaurant floor in Santa Monica when he asked, “So what have you learned since I last saw you?”—and I acted, at 67, like a 19-year-old schoolboy as I cringed.)
Bottom line: I strongly believe that an explicit focus on “lifelong learning” for everyone on board could well be the most sustainable advantage an organization of any flavor can have!
Hence, I hereby strongly (!!) suggest that … “An unstinting commitment by every one of us to accelerated lifelong learning” … or some close kin be made a formal part of your mission-values statement. It deserves to be right up there in the stratosphere with the likes of superior quality and profitability.
LESSON PLAN
“Syllabus” notes on organizational lifelong learning:
(1) A bedrock commitment to lifelong learning applies to … the whole team … in the Marriott’s housekeeping department as well as in the R&D warrens at Amgen.
(2) Financial support is key—small and big. (Be careful of cutting back too far on this in difficult times.)
(3) Support for non-work-related learning experiences is part of the package —we aim to instill a generic, formal, learning obsession!
(4) Supporting this commitment throughout employees’ families is also important if at all possible.
(5) Design it into the physical and electronic landscape—visibly “push” learning opportunities or imbed microlearning opportunities in your daily repartee.
(6) Support clubs, virtual and real, and any and all forms of social organization with explicit learning goals.
(7) Put “lifelong-learning accomplishments and goals” into the formal hiring and evaluation process—front and center.
119. Out-Study ‘Em!
Tennis coach Brad Gilbert was once the #4-ranked pro in the world. But he was no natural. His breakthrough came (after a very spotty career that was about to tank early) when he acknowledged to himself that he wasn’t a natural. His response could have been to kick his racket into the grandstands. Instead, it was to hit the books.
Or, rather, write one.
Gilbert was the guy who, when the other guys went for a beer after a match, hung around watching more matches, talking tennis with anyone and everyone … and writing it all down. (Remember Branson’s hundreds of notebooks?) He began his black book, taking notes on everything, especially other players he’d faced, or players he might face. The result: that eventual #4 ranking, followed by a superb coaching career, working with the likes of Andre Agassi and Andy Roddick.
No surprise, one of Gilbert’s coaching secrets has been continuing his own studies, as well as converting his players into students (sometimes no mean feat … with those “naturals”). Coach Gilbert acknowledges that there may be a few, like John McEnroe, who can get away without hitting the books … but for us mortals that’s scant consolation.
This surely translates in 2010, one for one, to the World of Work you and I participate in. I loved these lines from New York Times columnist Tom Friedman: “When I was growing up, my parents used to say to me: ‘Finish your dinner—people in China are starving.’ I, by contrast, find myself wanting to say to my daughters: ‘Finish your homework—people in China and India are starving for your job.’” Tennis or finance or engineering or bartending … this “simple” lesson bears repeating. (A bartender pal may, in fact, be the most assiduous student I know—and it pays off and pays.)
Study!
Study!
Study!
Age 27?
Study!
Age 47?
Study!
Age 67 (me)?
Study!
Study!
(And then study some more!)
(I’m studying harder now than I did at the beginning of my “guru” career—the market is tougher and things are moving faster!)
(And I’ve truly redoubled my study efforts as the recession gained a head of steam—the gigs left are frightfully competitive.)
120. Out-Read ‘Em!
I love bookstores … even in the age of Amazon. And there is none I love more than London’s Hatchards, on Piccadilly (est. 1797). To prepare for my annual Hatchards Christmas pilgrimage (I added a day to my voyage from Dubai to Boston expressly and solely to go to Hatchards), I emptied my backpack before heading to the store. Ha! I ended up expressing a big box home. And also ended up with a $400 book bill, high even by my standards.
THANK YOU, MOM PETERS!
She made me the marrow-sucking, reading maniac I am today. Nothing contributes more to my personal and professional well-being. The thought crossed my mind that I’d happily spend the rest of my life in a condo above Hatchards, slipping down to exchange books at a second’s notice.
Read!
Read Wide!
Surprise Yourself With Your Reading Picks!
Read Deep!
Read Often!
Out-READ the “Competition”!!!!!
Take Notes!
Summarize!
Share With Others What You Read!
(Not to impress them, but selfishly, because there’s no other way to imbed what you’ve learned.)
Create/Join a Reading Salon!
Read!
Read!
Read!
(FYI. I am not a fast reader—a surprise to many.)
121. Out-Write ‘Em!
On a killer Houston-Bangkok trip, I read Graham Swift’s The Light of Day. What a master! He conjured up so much emotion that I was pretty much a wreck when I reached the end of my journey. He pegs human frailty so perfectly …
Segue:
I’m an engineer.
Tops at all things mathematical.
(Not bragging, comes naturally.)
Writing did not/does not/never will come naturally. (It’s 3:45 A.M. in Nelson, New Zealand, as I re-re-re-edit this—laboriously.)
I’m still not worth a damn as far as I’m concerned—but at least I’m a decent journeyman. And perhaps I’ve found my “voice.”
Want to know why?
Because I worked my ass off!
(“Worked my ass off” = Wrote and wrote and wrote … and wrote.)
(And wrote.)
Good writing matters!
(It can move mountains.)
Odds are, neither you nor I will challenge Graham Swift’s craftsmanship, but we can damn well be much, much better than we are … which does matter.
So: Work your ass off on your writing, from tweets to emails to blog posts to letters to your mum—each is an opportunity. (I’m amazed at how much you can learn to pack into, with some clarity, a 140-character tweet.)
GRANT, WRITING
Ulysses S. Grant was likely America’s most effective general. He had many skills—and lucid writing, interestingly, ranked near the top. His orders to his generals before battles were masterpieces of clarity and brevity.
Writing matters … on the battlefield in Vicksburg as well as in the boardroom.
122. Now Enrolling: “The People’s MBA.”
I have long been a vociferous critic of the MBA—such criticism was the de facto
point of In Search of Excellence. Bob Waterman and I, though both engineers (Waterman in mining, me in civil) and both Stanford MBAs and both McKinsey consultants (the latter a mecca of cold-blooded business analysis), lamented business’s abiding emphasis on the numbers and its accompanying de facto and de jure de-emphasis of the so-called soft “people stuff.”
Well, the economic crisis of 2007++ underscores and intensifies the message of our 25-plus-year-old book. And, alas, illustrates what little distance we’ve come*—and how far we have to go. (*Or have we gone backwards?)
For far longer than 25 years (perhaps going on 40 years), I have made my life’s work focusing on the neglected “people stuff” and “implementation stuff.” Now, with tongue only slightly in cheek, I offer, here, my prospective MBA curriculum, without comment.
Core Course Menu
Managing People I, II, III
• Servant Leadership I, II
Execution I, II, III
Creating a “Try it now” environment/Celebrating Failure
Maximizing R.O.I.R. (Return on Investment in Relationships)
Value-added through XFX/Cross-functional EXCELLENCE/“Sucking down,” the Art of “Lower”-Level Networking
Value-added by converting all “Departments” into PSFs/Professional Service Firms/Centers of Excellence and Astounding Value-Added
Sales I, II
Service EXCELLENCE
Creating INCREDIBLE Customer Experiences
Accounting I, II
Accountability I, II
Calendar Mastery/Time Management
MBWA I, II(Managing By Wandering Around)
Nurturing and Harvesting Curiosity
Design-as-Strategy
Giving Great Presentations I, II
Active Strategic Listening I, II (III?)
Civility/“Thank you”-Recognition/Thoughtfulness/Decency/Respect/Apology-as-Strategy
The Little Big Things Page 26