We Should Ask

We should ask why Christopher Columbus did not feel a compulsion to stay constantly in touch with all of his friends while he undertook one of the most dangerous and important voyages in history.

We should ask why our Founding Fathers were able to write one of the most important documents of all time, even though they were not able to immediately share every development detail with everyone, simultaneously.

We should ask why Abraham Lincoln was capable of leading this country through what was arguably one of the greatest challenges ever, without a compulsion of inadvertently adding in the distraction of making sure he shared all of the insignificant details 24/7.

We should ask why Mark Twain, Ernest Hemingway, F. Scott Fitzgerald, Walt Whitman, Emily Dickinson and other great American Authors were able to create some of the finest literary works ever written without the entire world knowing what they wore while they were on vacation.

We should ask why Babe Ruth, Jessie Owens, Babe Didrikson Zaharias and hundreds of other exceptional athletes were able to accomplish incredible feats while competing with other remarkable athletes, without devoting much time at all worrying about how to post their feelings.

We should ask why Martin Luther King was able to have and share a dream, that changed the course of history even though he could not, or chose not to, wallow in details of monumental insignificance in the world around him.

We should ask why it is okay to destroy the rules of grammar and create an entirely new vocabulary that is tougher that Egyptian Hieroglyphics, but makes a lot less sense.

We should ask why so many people, of all ages, are compelled to remove the human element and replace it with a device that cannot love, feel, hurt, share or produce meaningful relationship. Why does a couple sit across from each other at a restaurant and stare at a small screen while they frantically type, oblivious to each other and the world around them.

We should ask why so many school age students can send thousands of digital messages through the course of a month yet they cannot read well enough, add well enough, explain the Constitution or the basic structure of their government well enough, identify an invertebrate from a vertebrate or conjugate a verb.

We should ask why people drive along at highway speeds and cannot leave the device dormant long enough to respond to "dings" and not risk their safety and the safety of others around them.

We should ask why we have no problem responding immediately to a "text" but are too busy to visit personally or return a phone call. We should ask why we allow this insensitive form of communication to take the place of a voice.

We should ask why and if we do, when we arrive at an answer it should include, less of the digital activities and much more of the activities that will help us to help others and ourselves.

We really should ask why.

Insight

One of my more interesting professional endeavors, that included a great many "locational benefits", was when I served as publisher of The Washington DC Business Journal. Our office was in Northern Virginia. My responsibilities took me into the District frequently and because I was in the District, I would often spend my lunchtime in The Smithsonian or at any of the fabulous monuments and historical places to visit. Since I was there, of course I had to take advantage of the opportunities. It was in DC where I met Trammel Crow.

The DC Business Journal complied a list each year of the top 100 Private Companies in the greater DC area.  This list was one of many we did but the Top 100 Private Companies list was always one of the most coveted lists of the year. Companies were clamoring to be included and those companies that were included on last year's list, wanted to move up in the rankings. We held a fabulous banquet and awards ceremony each year at one of the posh hotels in the area to honor the Top 100 Companies. The event featured a high-profile keynote speaker and always sold out!

The first year I was in DC we had Trammel Crow as our keynote. Mr. Crow was a pure entrepreneur. He was one of eight children that lived in a rented one bedroom home in East Dallas. He went on to become one of the largest real estate developers in the country. Warehouses were his specialty but he also developed high-rise office buildings and world class hotels. The Lowe's Anatole Hotel in Dallas is his development.

We brought Mr. Crow in for the banquet, put him up in a world class hotel and reserved a limousine to get him to and from the banquet. I was responsible for serving as the host representing The DC Business Journal. On the evening of the banquet I met Mr. Crow in the lobby of his hotel ready to escort him to the festivities. We walked outside to the limousine, the chauffeur opened the door and much to our surprise, Mr. Crow said;"Why don't you and I walk." We walked on the sidewalk with the limousine trailing slowly behind us. The experience was unique and unforgettable.

While walking I suddenly realized that I had Trammel Crow all to myself. We had a delightful conversation during which I asked; "What was the single thing about entrepreneurism and success that I could hang my hat on?" He did not hesitate. Even before his next step hit the ground he replied; "It is harder than I thought it was going to be and it is bigger than I ever imagined."

What a great lesson. Here was a "rags-to-BIG-riches" highly successful person giving me his secret formula for success.

It does not matter if you reach the level of success that Trammel Crow did. What matters is that you stay the course and have faith in your ideas and reach for your dreams. All things are relative and your level of success is one day going to be bigger than you imagined as long as you do the hard part and stay the course. Take a step and then take another step.

Say Again

A while ago a magazine requested their readers to send in some statements made by professional
leadership at work that they found confusing, ambiguous or downright dumb. Here are some of the selected responses;

1: As of tomorrow, employees will only be able to access the building using individual security cards. Pictures for the cards will be taken next Wednesday and employees should receive their security cards within two weeks.

2: What we need is a list of specific unknown problems we will encounter.

3: Email is not to be used to pass on information or data.

4: This project is so important that we cannot allow things that are more important to interfere with it.

5: This memo is to inform you that a memo will be issued today regarding the subject memo above.

Not only are these comments from top leadership, they are verging on the precipice of ridiculous and most of them are are from leaders in Fortune 500 companies!

Clear and continuous communications is so very important. In business the self inflicted wounds that are created are more often than not a direct result of poor or non existent clear communications. The very same disconnect occurs in personal relationships. When communication is clear and direct there is far less confusion and the anticipated outcomes are much more likely. Many times individuals are held accountable for not doing what they were not told to do and that never has and never will work. When direct results are expected, a clear understanding of who, what, how, where and when must be understood and the only means to assure this is to clearly communicate. If the "why" can also be shared it should be shared. People feel much more positive about doing something if they know why they are doing what they are expected to do. The "why" gives those involved a sense of ownership and when a position of ownership is taken,  the outcomes are almost always more desirable because there is a feeling of important involvement. Clear and continuous communications is the answer, independent of the question.

The High Road

Years ago before modern paved roads and bridges existed most roads were built at ground level. Fewer roads were built at higher levels for easily understood reasons. The high roads were harder to build. When the weather was fair, most travelers took the low roads. The paths were more direct, requiring less effort and less travel time. When the weather was not good the high road proved to be a safer route even though it was surely going to demand more time and effort. Taking the high road was always harder.

When faced with a challenging situation, where tempers and emotions may very likely lead to the altering of facts always take the high road. Irrational people make irrational statements and behave irrationally and we all reach an irrational status at sometimes in our lives. People tend to emotionally skew the reality of the controversial event to meet their objectives and support their position. When you are on the other side of this emotionally charged event, you may also have a tendency to get emotionally charged and lash out...ready-fire-aim. Experience has taught me that only firemen should fight fire with fire. When people fight fire with fire, other people generally get burned. If the flames are high enough, both parties suffer wounds. The damage can become an everlasting part of some lives and no matter what is done to correct the wrong and get behind the scars to aid in the healing, the permanent damage is done.

Taking the high road may mean you have to humble yourself, ignore the facts and look the other way, but it may also save a relationship. You can always wait to address the issue when emotions are lowered and you are both on the same road. One of the many positive benefits to taking the high road is that you will learn about yourself and that education will lead to your personal and professional growth.

The Goat in The Bathtub

Our business, not unlike others,  is built upon delivering what a client needs in a timely and professional manner. One of the very valuable services we provide while pursuing this is goal is creative design of advertising. We are fortunate to have a very capable staff that creates over one thousand ads every month for our list of clients. The needs are often fairly straight forward. Basically, the ad needs to look good, be readable, be a professional individual reflection of the business and include  graphic elements that grab attention.

Recently one of our advertising professionals sent in a request to have the creative department, put a goat in a bathtub. The client, a unique gift shop, was planning a clearance sale and some of the clearance items were products made from goat milk. Thus the goat in the bathtub, covered in soap bubbles, represented a clearance sale! Our creative department has many resources available to them that provide excellent and very professional graphic elements they can select to use in the ads they build for our customers. However, a goat in a bathtub is not on the list. Therefore this customized graphic had to be created.

When the special request was received by our graphic department to put a goat in a bathtub, the response was one of; "We can do this" rather than, as others may respond to special request; "We cannot do this", We are not allowed to do this", We have never done this" and on and on with a exhaustive list of why something special can't be done instead of why something special can and should be done.

We have all made special requests from time to time and how the person, business or organization we are making the special request of responds, speaks volumes to their commitment to high caliber customer service. The lengths they are willing to go to to meet the requests will likely determine the value that is placed on their brand. Brands that are well known for going the extra mile are typically those brands that enjoy great levels of loyalty. The fullfilling of special requests starts at the top of any organization and flows through the hearts of the folks doing the job of meeting customer needs. It is a matter of culture. Does your culture allow you to put a goat in a bathtub or not? Ours does.

Attention All Students

School is about to start, just as school starts every year. I remember the excitement of the beginning of
the school year and then the reality of what I was in for, especially since I didn't care much for school. The beginning of school meant that I could, for the next nine months,  reconnect and stay connected to my many friends and perhaps make a few new friends. School also meant that high school football was imminent and that was reason enough, in my mind, to endure the exhaustive classroom drudgery. The things I liked the best about school were important to me but not academically relevant. The newness of the school year quickly wore off and the daily academic quest became more and more of a drag on my lifestyle. Homework was always getting in the way of more important activities such as sandlot football, shooting pool or just hanging out.

Whilst I was underachieving at my schoolwork, many of my teachers saw something in me that I did not, until later in life, see in myself. My Mother saw what the teachers saw. What they saw and what they insisted upon sharing with me was that, my self impression, that I was not capable, was entirely wrong. I was consciously not measuring up to my raw potential. I wasn't lazy. I was not focused. They saw a kid with unbridled energy headed it too many directions and found it very challenging to get my attention long enough to help me focus. I was the thoroughbred horse that just wanted to run and run, never making the turn on the track, I ran straight through the white fence, off the track and into the future.

What would have been if I had paid attention and applied myself during my school years. Here after all this time I still ask that question. Of course, I cannot allow the choices I made way back then to encumber me from achieving my goals and to a large extent they have not. But what if?

Stay in school, arrive on time, meet deadlines, apply yourself, be thorough, get the help you need, behave, show respect to your teachers and they in authority. Your school years are some of the most tremendous and turbulent times of your life. They matter, you matter and your teachers matter. Act like it, because you will never regret behaving appropriately and making a great effort.

Horizontal Roots

We have a few nice size flower beds around our home. The gentleman who completely restored this 1920's home had the foresight to not only put in these nice flower beds but he also put down a weed-barrier. This black sheet of material is rolled out onto the surface and then covered with top-soil. The plants you choose to grow are planted within a circle you cut in the barrier, allowing their roots to grow deeply. However, when weeds grow, their roots are restricted from growing down by this barrier. This makes the puling of the weeds extremely easy. The weeds roots cannot "Take-Root" and no matter the number or variety of weeds, the pulling is a piece-of-cake.

Roots matter. The foundation you possess is a fine example of your roots. The root foundation is comprised of the people who influenced you, the books you have read and the things you have learned by experience. Adequate root structures require a fertile environment and that means you have to be willing to learn and grow at every opportunity, especially when you make mistakes. The taller you grow in your endeavor the deeper your roots need to grow. When the growth is too rapid and disproportionately vertically focused the roots do not have adequate time to grow deeply, the top-heavy result is unstable. You look really good growing so high so fast but when a challenge comes you do not have a sufficient root structure to be able to overcome the negative forces.

Growth is desirable but the right kind of growth at the right pace is the kind that will develop a deep root system that will sustain your personal and professional experiences for a lifetime. Grow deeply as well as tall.