A REMINDER ABOUT YOUR POWER

 

You live in a hierarchy and therefore you live in an universe of power and you become blind to it when you are the major power holder of the hierarchy.  And in all probability, as a modern CEO, you are a nice enough guy and quite adept at using your power lightly.

So I am reminding you about how you are in the eyes of your company. You give and you take away. You reward and you don't. You smile and talk or you don't. And people watch. They notice. 

Think of this as a glimmer of a lesson you have forgotten. Think about how you mute yourself when you have an opportunity you don't want to mess up. Think of how eager you are to please you global boss ready to drive the car to pick her  up. You are just as scared about disapproval from above. You are equally if not more sensitive to the issue of pay. You choose carefully where you sit at a table at a Board meeting. You quiver to power shift.

And you are just as eager to do good work and and just as dramatically turned off by lack of recognition as every person is in your company. Just as human as any person who works for you about how to live in a world maintained by positions of power.

THE WORLD TILTED

Fifteen years ago on 9/11 I was in the office tying up loose ends before I left for vacation. The day in Maine was gloriously Fall. The burnished quality of the sun and the flat fabric like blue sky were iconic. I noted it and felt lucky for the break I was to take. 

I went to the Board room to find the CEO to touch bases before I left and was curious about the TV being on. I entered and for a moment thought my colleagues were watching a spoof of a King Kong movie. Then I heard the tone of the announcer's voice and sat down next to my boss. We waited to understand the tragedy and then the second tower fell. I grabbed the hand of the CEO and we sat silently as we watched the world tilt and our American innocence slide away. 

It has not come back. How do we do important and good work in an atmosphere of random violence and a pervasive cultural anxiety that has become part of the fabric of our lives? That is a question we don't think about often enough. We forget what we ingested on that shining Fall day fifteen years ago. 

GIVE 'BORING' A TRY

Are you an adrenaline junkie? Probably. The morass of 'in your face'  issues you have to deal with and the boredom of day to day demands that don't seem to move the needle make you vulnerable to loving the crisis, the big magic change,
the latest leadership innovation.

What can be called 'boring' can also be incredibly satisfying:

—How about being "well run"?

—How about regarding strong management and supervision as key to smooth days?

—How about toning down overly dramatic language of the "best in class, worst showing, amazing, stellar, excellent, peak, burning platform"?  It's an odd habit of pumping everything up to a life or death urgency. 

—How about being patient with a project to allow it to come to fruition. No helicopter parenting of innovation.

—How about the value of trudging to get where you want to go? Left foot, right foot.?

—How about setting your own pace and running the race according to plan?

—How about giving your organization a break?

If these questions make you scornful or seem naive, then go have your adrenal
glands checked for exhaustion. Just a thought.