Time and Precision

I had the pleasure of sitting next to a chef while on a flight to Chicago earlier this week. I like to cook, so conversation came easily. I was surprised by a couple of things he shared with me.

First, making good bread from scratch apparently takes about 12 hours. Who knew? Mr. Chef gave me first-hand, step by step instructions detailing what it takes to make good bread, and the process takes a long time. You have to add yeast to the dough, let the dough rise, pound it back down, and let it rise again several times before baking it. According to Mr. Chef, the more opportunities the dough has to rise, the better the bread will be in the end, but this takes a lot of time.

I asked Mr. Chef about baking, and found out that baking is fairly simple. "Follow the recipe," he said. Wait a minute, I thought being a chef was all about experimentation and adding flavors ad hoc. Nope, being a chef is all about making good food, and in the world of baked goods if you screw with the recipe and don't follow it precisely, you can ruin good baked goods. He was adamant, "follow the recipe."

So, what did I learn from my friend Mr. Chef? I learned a couple of important things: time and precision are important factors in bringing about the good stuff in life. Some things just take time - there's no other remedy, and there are no shortcuts. The same is true with precision. If we want things to turn out well, it's in our best interests to be as precise as possible on the front end.

I'll never look at bread or cookies the same way again.

The Wisdom of Charlie Brown

Have you ever found yourself at a place in life where you begin to ask yourself how you got there? We all take the occasional detour or wrong turn, but often quick fixes won't put us back on the right track. In these moments we need time for reflection, counsel, and preparation for making changes and heading back in the right direction. Caution, patience, and endurance become the hallmarks of success during these times in life, not knee jerk reactions. Charlie Brown had it right all along - "Sometimes I lay awake at night, and I ask, 'Where have I gone wrong?' Then a voice says to me, 'This is going to take more than one night.'"

It's OK to take wrong turns, be in the wrong place, and make bad decisions, so long as we recognize these things and diligently pursue the next right turn or good decision that will lead us back toward the right place in life. It might take more than one night.

Americana

Baseball, hot dogs, and apple pie are often associated with the American way of life.

Baseball - a game where kids can revel in joyful exuberance while mimicking the very heroes they admire. It's also a full blown commercial enterprise characterized by the abuse of performance enhancing drugs and multi-million dollar salaries.

Hot dogs - I'm not sure anybody really knows what's inside a hot dog. It doesn't really matter though, since an increasingly obese America loves to consume them. According to the National Hot Dog and Sausage Council, Americans typically consume 7 billion hot dogs between Memorial Day and Labor Day. That's 818 hot dogs consumed every second during that period. As if that weren't enough, we've somehow managed to create an entire subculture centered around contests designed to celebrate individuals who can consume the most dogs before spewing chunks all over the onlookers.

Apple pie - Surely there can't be anything wrong with a fresh, home made apple pie cooling in the kitchen windowsill. Agreed; although for most, the closest we get to a home made apple pie comes from a box stamped with the name of Mrs. Smith or Edwards.

If this is what we're known for, I'm not sure what this says about who we are. I guess it's all a matter of perspective.

Entitlements

I was in an airport in the middle of nowhere recently and had an opportunity to witness and be involved in an exceptionally interesting exchange. I was flying with my least favorite air carrier because they happen to be one of just three airlines that service this ridiculously small airport in the middle of nowhere. They're my least favorite because they have a reputation for being late, the employees are generally pretentious and uptight, and I don't particularly like their choice of aircraft selection.

So, my least favorite air carrier (being true to their reputation) made sure that every leg of my flight was late, and as I sat in this airport in the middle of nowhere I got to participate in the following exchange:

Realizing my flight was delayed, I approached the counter and asked the gate agent if the delay would impact my connection and ultimate arrival at my final destination. She basically told me that I was hosed. "Yep...you're going to miss the connection...you'll have to take the later flight...you're probably going to arrive at your final destination about 2 hours late." Now granted, most days I don't look like a polished executive or CEO of a Fortune 500 company. It's quite the opposite. Most days I more closely resemble a surfer who has just come in off the beach or a derelict reprobate with a criminal background or some other sordid past, so I wasn't really expecting much. All I wanted was information, and that's what I got.

By contrast, the next guy in line was wearing a $500 suit. Now, get the picture straight in your mind - I'm in a T-shirt, jeans, and flip flops; he's in full blown "look at me" mode - starched shirt, silk tie, cuff links, the whole bit. He has the same problem I do, and the same credentials. This guy isn't like super gold elite membership status in the frequent flier program or anything like that. He's just a guy in a nice suit whose flight is delayed. The interesting thing about the exchange (part 1) is that this guy thought that the suit entitled him to special treatment. He wanted to be rerouted, or get an upgrade at no charge, free drinks on the plane, first in line to board, etc. You know what? He got it all. Apparently the gate agent also recognized that the suit entitled him to king-like treatment. Not only did he get everything he demanded, but the gate agents practically tripped over themselves to make sure he was taken care of. In the military, this is commonly referred to as "boot licking."

The next character enters stage left. A self-absorbed collegiate teen, who wants everyone to think she's 25, steps to the counter. It's her turn to complain. Now the competition begins. She has to one up "expensive suit guy." Out comes the ace card: "My daddy is a pilot with you guys, and he got this ticket for me. If you can't get me to my final destination on time, I'll be forced to have him call your supervisor." UH OH...For those of you following along at home, what she actually said was, "I'm entitled to more stuff than that guy, because I'm more important." Funny thing, she also got everything she asked for.

Now, what's the point of this long, comedic rant about these two individuals? The point is this: These two people were so absorbed by what they thought they were entitled to, that they became completely consumed by it, competing with each other for the spoils, and losing complete sight of anything that carried any real value, like self-respect for instance. Make no mistake about it, these two got everything they deserved in the end - premium seats, free drinks, a sense of superiority, and it only cost them their dignity, respect, and the slightest chance than anyone in life will ever take them seriously.

When all you have in life is what you think you're entitled to, then you never have anything of value because everything becomes tarnished by self-absorption. If you don't think you're entitled to anything in life, then everything you receive becomes a precious gift that you're thankful for, and show gratitude for.

I hope those seats were worth it.

Triumvirate

The word triumvirate is from the Latin, and means "of three men." The first triumvirate was an alliance between the Roman Emperor Gaius Julius Caesar, and two other influential Romans, Marcus Licinius Crassus and Gnaeus Pompeius Magnus. These three men joined together for the common good, and wielded overwhelming power and influence to that end from the time the alliance was formed in 60 BC until Crassus' death in 53 BC.

Do you have a couple of people in your life that you can count on? Who are the members of your personal triumvirate, the people you are engaged with on a regular basis for the sake of doing good? Who are the people that are watching out for you? Do you have your two or three? If not, get them. It's worth it.

The triumvirate accomplished more together than any one of them could have ever accomplished on their own.

Rain

Spring is here. Spring always brings with it the spring rains. As a kid, I used to play in the rain regularly. Thunderstorms were a perfect playground for me. Thunderstorms display an unbridled power that causes us to marvel. Water randomly falling from the sky is a marvelous concept in itself. You can be as loud as you want to be in the midst of a thunderstorm and it will still drown you out, literally and figuratively. Rain can soak you all the way through to your very soul.

As adults, we develop this obsession with staying dry. We carry umbrellas, raincoats, and build covered walkways to avoid the rain. I wonder if this phenomenon tells us something about ourselves. We take note of kids who seem to be scared of big storms, but I don't really think the storms cause their fear. I think what they're really scared of is the unknown. Early in life they haven't experienced enough storms to understand and appreciate them. Adults, by contrast, put on a cool demeanor, but in reality live like we're terrified of rain. I wonder about that.

Are we terrified of getting wet, then cold, then dying of pneumonia? That's not likely. I'm not talking about being trapped outdoors during the African monsoon season with no available shelter. I'm talking about playing in the rain in the back yard. Are we terrified of getting wet, looking ridiculous, and being ridiculed by our peers for our appearance? That's more likely, and it's a stupid reason to be terrified. Are we terrified of being struck by lightning? "It's way to dangerous to be playing outside." The odds are slim. Could it be that we're more terrified of our neighbors thinking we've lost all sense of decorum?

As adults we lose the inner kid, which I personally think is tragic. Try playing in the rain the next time a storm passes through and reclaim the inner kid. Not only will it energize you, but it will also refresh you. Genuine fun has a way of doing that - clearing away the clutter of life, allowing a laugh, and putting us on a better footing to do the work of life afterwards.

Go play in the rain.

Simplicity

I think life has become too complex for most of the people I encounter on a daily basis. At least half of the complexity we deal with is self induced. The other part is split between what I would consider reasonable complexities in life, and those thrust upon us by external factors. Any way you slice it, life is very complex. For most of us it's getting more complex daily.

What can we control in this equation? For starters, if we can agree that there will always be some complexity in life that is biologically normal and reasonable, then we have to assume that it is also manageable in the normal day to day of doing life. This brings us to the point at which we have to evaluate our self induced complexities and complexities due to external factors.

The interesting thing is that the simplest one of these to deal with also represents the largest part of the problem. Life is not that complicated. Jettison unnecessary complexity in favor of simplicity. So many people that I talk to are overwhelmed by how complex their lives are. They don't recognize that they're causing most of the problem themselves.

The complexity of one's life is not an indicator of status, importance, ability, or favor. It's an indicator that people aren't self aware and haven't set reasonable boundaries. Slow down, grasp simplicity.

Character

"A talent is formed in stillness, a character in the world's torrent." - Johann Wolfgang von Goethe

"It is not in the still calm of life, or in the repose of a pacific station, that great characters are formed." - Abigail Adams

Character is clearly not a virtue that one comes by easily. It seems as if the development of character is tied directly to turmoil, life stress, and moments of high tension. Character really can't be developed without a backdrop of extreme circumstances.

Those circumstances vary from individual to individual. Some have experienced this tension and stress in the midst of war, some have experienced it though poverty, some have made poor personal choices and experienced this character building stress during incarceration, rehabilitation, or recovery.

Make no mistake about it, character comes at a high personal cost. It's almost always accompanied by pressure and stress. Because of this, it's a virtue that few truly possess. When given the choice of enduring extreme personal stress, pressure, or pain as a character building exercise, most simply choose comfort over character. How tragic. Therein lies the reason why there are so few real men and women of character.

"Endurance produces proven character, and proven character produces hope." - Romans 5:4

Computer Engineer Barbie

I couldn't resist, the temptation to write about this got to me and I finally broke down. The story that follows is an example of what a small, dedicated, and well network group can accomplish when they work together.

Mattel Inc., maker of the iconic Barbie doll, recently asked fans to vote on what profession the next Barbie should have. Among choices were architect, anchorwoman, computer engineer, environmentalist and surgeon.

After 4 weeks and over half a million votes, girls the world over had made their decision: Anchorwoman Barbie. Awesome, thanks for your vote little girls, but the adults win...again.

Adults overwhelmingly dwarfed the girls by casting their votes for Computer Engineer Barbie. How could this have happened?

Apparently a small network of computer engineers were enthralled with the prospect of a Barbie doll fashioned in their likeness, and decided launch a viral campaign to get their colleagues to vote in favor of the computer engineer version of the doll.

Result: Mattel will launch Computer Engineer Barbie as the next doll in their "I Can Be..." line later this fall.

Don't underestimate the power of a small, dedicated, and well networked group, regardless of whether you're interacting with one, a member, or leading.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304198004575171791681002592.html

In a nod to the kids (who will one day comprise a larger, still dedicated, but better networked group), Mattel decided it would also launch Anchorwoman Barbie. Good call Mattel. I bet there are more little girls driving purchase motivation for Barbie dolls than computer engineers.

Detours

Have you ever taken a detour in life?

I was on the way in to the office this morning and missed my exit. I found myself needing to cross four lanes of rush hour traffic with less than a quarter mile between me and my exit. Needless to say, I ended up taking a detour.

There are times in life when detours help us avoid danger, other times, they catapult us into just the right position to help someone else along the way. Detours always bring a fresh new perspective to our otherwise well traveled routes in life. We see things differently when we take a detour. Adrenaline seems to ignite our senses and we absorb the new and novel.

Most of the time, we think of detours as unintentional. Some unforeseen circumstance alters our course or changes our direction, but detours can also be intentional. We have the ability to choose our direction, and we can deviate from our intended course in life as often as there are crossroads. We should consider more fully the benefits of intentional detours, side trips in life if you will, and experience them more often for the opportunity to see things afresh and anew, and interact with people that we might otherwise never come in contact with.

With detours comes perspective, something we could all use a little more of.

Early Mornings

I'm not a morning person. In fact, for large parts of my life I've felt mostly allergic to mornings. I would much rather sleep in and work late. I often feel a little nauseated in the mornings, breakfast is my least favorite meal of the day, and it's cold early in the morning. I just don't like mornings, but I have been able to find value in them.

Early morning brings with it a vast array of benefits that can't be obtained anywhere else throughout the day. As much as I dislike mornings, I like benefits, and I like benefits enough to endure early mornings. Consider all the benefits associated with early mornings:

If you're the first one up, you have a head start on everyone else.
It's quiet early in the morning.
You can get a lot of stuff done before the hustle and bustle of the day begins.
You can actually focus on what you're doing without distraction.
Chances are, you're sharper early in the morning.
If you can tolerate it, you can actually eat nice breakfast foods (a skill that I've only recently acquired).

I travel a lot, and I often see people early in the morning at airports, coffee shops, and a whole host of other places. You can always tell how a person's day will unfold by their morning demeanor.

Early mornings set the tone and mood for our days. If we're grumpy, hung over, sluggish, or generally disagreeable, it's much more likely that we're going to be grumpy, miserable, behind schedule, and generally disagreeable throughout the rest of the day. If we instead use early mornings as a time to hit the reset button, get a jump on the rest of the world, and take advantage of early morning benefits, it provides us with the best opportunity to enjoy a fruitful and productive day.

What time did you get up this morning?

From Your Feet to Your Face

We do and say crazy things when we're in love. We get caught up in the emotion of the moment and lose any capacity for rational decision making. Everything becomes emotion and instinct, and we allow ourselves to be vulnerable and exposed. The filter of logic comes off and we are left with pure emotion on display for the world to see, and we could care less.

When we love people, we don't care who else sees our actions or hears our words so long as they are seen and heard by the object of our affection. The actions and words of a person in love create a lot of "collateral damage" in the sense that onlookers can't help but notice and be impacted by what they see and hear. The behavior can become contagious as those same onlookers in turn act and speak similarly to their loved ones.

Last night after dinner, my three year old son walked into our living room to play with an enormous train track that I had spent the better part of an hour preparing for him earlier in the day. After about five minutes of play he bounced over to me, looked at me with a serious and determined expression, and said, "Daddy, I love you from your feet to your face." I think he meant that he loves me from head to toe, but who cares, feet to face is way cooler.

This is what it love looks like. We say crazy things like, "I love you from your feet to your face." We get caught up in the emotion of the moment, and we impact others around us by our actions. A little more of this crazy love could only be a good thing.

Silence

Silence is a precious commodity. Silence is precious because it's scare. It's rare. In our society today there is so much noise pushing in on us from every direction. There is noise from media, entertainment, social networking, wireless communication, jobs, families, civic responsibilities. The list is endless. It's possible in today's world to go through life without a moment of silence, but what does the loss of silence mean? What does it do to us as individuals and as a society?

The loss of silence means constant distraction. Our attention is divided among so many competing interests that nothing ever gets the whole of our attention. Distractions divide us and keep us from putting our full strength and effort behind important tasks, projects, or issues. Not only does the distraction resulting from a lack of silence keep us from a high level of functional performance, it impairs our relationships as well, distracting and dividing us, producing ever shallower relationships.

A society steeped in noise is a society with a short memory. There's no opportunity for reflection or to dwell on the lessons of the past. If societies don't remember themselves and their place in the course of history, they can't chart a future course. Societies that don't occasionally take time to reflect in silence forget their past failures and successes. They can no longer remember the lessons learned from failures, or rally around past successes.

Silence is rare. It is scarce. Yet no place is better for being reminded of the past, learning from our failures as individuals and societies, focusing on the important things and people in life, and being refreshed and renewed. It's worth finding 15 minutes of silence each day.

Meaningful Failures

Thomas Edison failed repeatedly at attempts to invent the incandescent light bulb. When asked by a reporter if he felt like a failure, Edison responded by saying that he had been successful in finding numerous ways not to build the light bulb. His response seems trite to us, but there is real meaning in what he had to say. Edison was indicating that we can benefit from our failures. For him, it was a simple process of elimination, and each failed attempt brought him closer to success.

For the most part, we don't view failures this way. We try at all cost to avoid failure, which isn't realistic at all. Consider that the highest single season batting average on record in major league baseball is .440, and was recorded in 1894 by Hugh Duffy of the Boston Beaneaters. That means he actually got a hit roughly four out of every ten times he came to the plate to face an opposing pitcher. The other six times out of ten, he failed. He failed more often than he succeeded, yet he holds the record for the best single season batting average in all of major league baseball.

We can't avoid failure. We will fail, and if history is any indicator, we will fail more often than we succeed. If that's the case, the way we handle those failures becomes extremely important. We have to look at our failures as learning opportunities, moments that we can use to sharpen our instincts, abilities, and understanding, so that we are better prepared to wrestle with future challenges and prevail.

We all face failure, Tomas Edison, Hugh Duffy, you, me. What we do with those failures, which are likely to come more often than successes, will impact large and significant portions of our lives over the long term.

It's worth noting that Hugh Duffy hit a meager .282 in his first year, but improved in every year leading up to his record setting season. He continued to improve, hitting over .300 in 12 of his 16 seasons, and finishing his career with a lifetime .326 batting average.

Failures can be very meaningful, if we will only learn from our failures and use them as opportunities.

Patience

"Patience is the best remedy for every trouble." - Titus Plautus

My first instinct when I'm confronted with stressful and troublesome situations usually isn't patience. In fact, most people I know don't exude patience when confronted with life's challenging circumstances. We tend to be reactionary instead of clam and collected.

Patience is an undervalued virtue. We often deride those who are genuinely patient as weak and incapable of standing up for themselves in the face of difficulty. Not only is this completely untrue, but it reveals our lack of understanding about what patience really is.

Patience is the strength to endure in the face of difficulty without over-reacting. It's a balance between self-control and endurance. It's hard to be patient because patience requires strength, fortitude, perseverance, and endurance. When we think of patience this way, we get a much better appreciation for those who are genuinely patient. The appropriate response should be to emulate that patience in the hope of incorporating this virtue into our own lives each day.

Patience is a powerful tool often unused.

"The strongest of all warriors are these two - Time and Patience." - Leo Nikolaevich Tolstoi

Keep Your Customers Happy

If you have customers of any kind, it's important to understand these truths:

A customer's questions are not threats or challenges to your authority. Don't treat them like they are. When customers challenge the validity of a particular policy or question the rationale behind a decision, it's not a personal attack. Don't go into counter attack mode.

Your customers are the people who willingly give you their money in exchange for a product or service, and chances are, your product isn't indispensable. There's probably another like it out there somewhere, so it's not in your best interest to treat your customers like you own them for life. The reality is, you don't. Any sensible business person should know this.

Great business people understand the value of their customers. Good customers are the ones who buy your product or service, are loyal to your brand, and are satisfied with the quality and value of what you're providing them. Great customers, by contrast, are the ones who push your buttons. They ask the hard questions and challenge stupid policies, and that's what makes them great. They're beyond being happy with the product. They've moved into a psychological frame of mind where they view themselves as your partner in business. They're partnering with you to improve your product, service, brand strength, quality, value, etc. These people are the ones who will make your company great...if only you will listen.

The problem isn't that most companies under appreciate these customers. The problem is that most companies hate these customers. They're perceived as trouble makers, complainers, and generally disagreeable. Not so. Customers like these are the people who want your product or service to be the best that it can be so that they don't look bad when they recommend it to their friends and tell other people about it. What company doesn't want this positive word of mouth from it's customers?

Do not make these customers mad. You need to keep these people happy. Why? Because they are the most vocal and most invested constituents in your company. If you make them angry, they're still going to be vocal and they're still going to be fully invested, but their focus will change from investing in your company's success to doing everything in their power to bring the giant down, including telling every single person they know how terrible your product or service is, regardless of whether that evaluation is true or not.

Bottom line: keep these people happy. How do you do that? Listen to them, and genuinely consider what they have to say. Train everyone in your company to listen to them and incorporate their feedback. It might mean the difference between your company being here today or being gone tomorrow.

Lost Friends

"This ain't goodbye
This is just where love goes
When words aren't warm enough
to keep away the cold"

- Song lyrics written by a couple of genuine writers.

These words make the perfect lead in to today's post about lost friends. By lost I don't mean wandering around in the forest somewhere, or driving down a highway in the wrong direction. I mean friends that you highly valued and were close to at some point in time who have drifted away over the years.

I started thinking about this drift. What causes it? Why don't we stop it? Do we recognize what we're losing as we allow deeply meaningful relationships to simply drift away? The songwriters allude to a "cold" that constantly presses in on us, always trying to erode the most precious of our relationships. Why do we succumb to that cold?

I've lost a lot of friends over the years. They're not dead, they're just adrift, and I don't find myself launching search and rescue missions to go scour the waves in search of them. Boo for me. These are people who were once my closest compatriots, my sworn allies, individuals who would die alongside me in battle just so that I wouldn't have to die alone.

It's sad. I feel the loss. So what does one do in the midst of loss like this? You go find your friends, reconnect, start showing up in the midst of life's battles to provide reinforcements. Rekindle the mutual friendship that you once shared and build on that foundation. We shouldn't have "lost friends," because if they were truly friends in the first place, the moment we realize we've lost them, we would go seek them out and find them again.

The song ends...

"As long as we've got time
Then this ain't goodbye"

Spontaneous Encouragement

Encouragement is a strange and funny thing. Where do you go to get encouragement? Which is more encouraging, the encouragement you seek out, or the encouragement that comes spontaneously?

Lately I've had a couple of brushes with the later version. The first came when a good friend of mine stopped by to tell me that these early posts were actually really good and that he was truly enjoying the daily read. That wasn't planned. I didn't go seeking out that kind of encouragement, but it worked. I was encouraged. It lifted my spirits and fueled my desire to move forward and do more. I was experiencing success, but only recognized it after receiving his encouragement.

The second came as I heard second-hand about a collegiate commencement exercise that took place over the weekend. Apparently one of the graduates was filled with celebration, completely overcome by the emotion of the experience. To a currently enrolled student in attendance who noticed this emotional celebration, it became a moment of unbridled encouragement to persevere in the midst of her own studies.

One of these events was intentional, the other was not, but they both were spontaneous moments of encouragement that served to reignite a passion or desire. We all need these moments to energize and refuel us, which is why we go in search of encouragement during difficult or trying circumstances. There's nothing wrong with that, but these spontaneous moments of encouragement seem to pack more emotional punch. They're unexpected, and that's what makes them powerful.

Exercise your power today by encouraging someone spontaneously. The added passion and intensity they put in as a result of your encouragement will be well worth it.

Serving Others So Others Can Serve

I'm double booked tomorrow and in need of help. I'm sure you've felt this way at some point in your life. For me this typically means having to prioritize the commitments then neglect the lesser of the two. Pleasantly enough, that's not what 's happening tomorrow.

My friend Kim is bailing me out by voluntarily taking a 4 hour commitment off my hands. Don't miss this - voluntarily. When was the last time someone gave you four hours of time back? It's unheard of. Kim isn't even asking for anything in return. So, I'm getting four hours of my life back, and I'm not paying anything for it. That's a novel idea.

I started thinking about how the transaction looked from Kim's point of view. She's losing four hours of her life that she can never get back again, and she's getting nothing in return for it. This deal is so one sided that I started wondering if I was hallucinating. What would prompt someone to do that?

Then I started thinking about the effect her service would have on others even beyond me. My conflict tomorrow is due to some other friends having their first baby. I'm keeping a promise by going to the hospital to visit them. So, Kim has become the critical link in the chain here. Without her willingness to bail me out of the other responsibility, I break a promise and my friends at the hospital don't get a visit, or if they do, I end up blowing another commitment.

Kim taught me something today. I need to be on the lookout for opportunities to serve other people simply because I might be giving them the opportunity to serve a greater need for someone else. Imagine how much more enjoyable the world would be if we were all in a race to be the first to serve.

True service comes with caveats though. The act must be sacrificial, voluntary, and expect nothing in return. That's what made Kim's offer so shocking. She voluntarily gave up a valuable resource (time) and expected nothing in return. If I would voluntarily sacrifice for just one person a week in this way, it would turn my world upside down. I say we give it a try and see what happens. We might make someone's day. We might start a small movement. We might change the world. Now that's a novel idea.

Rule Breakers

Have you ever broken the rules? I have - frequently. I'm not talking about significant societal norms, but petty, contrived, and arbitrary rules that make no sense whatsoever.

Is your name tag displayed correctly at work?
Does your attire meet the business casual dress code requirement?
Did you park in the correctly assigned spot?

Why are we so obsessed with rules? Why do we spend so much time obsessing over the meaningless and mundane?

We contrive arbitrary rules like these, and then obsess about them, because we want a certain level of performance from individuals, but don't want to have to deal with the confrontation of holding them accountable. Instead of defining expectations and holding people accountable, we build a fortress of rules and try to enforce conformity. We like this method because it's much less confrontational, and as human beings we tend to avoid confrontation.

What have we given up in the meantime though? We've given up our transparency. We're no longer being straight with people and telling them what our expectations are. We're not providing opportunities for meaningful successes or failures, much less personal or professional growth and development. In the process, we're spending an excessive amount of time, effort, and energy in constructing and maintaining this house of rules facade. It's wasteful, and doesn't generate much value. This approach simply creates conformity for conformity's sake.

People who are comfortable living inside a house of rules typically exude low expectation. It's the equivalent of saying, "I don't expect much from you. You're not going to generate a lot of value, so the best I can hope for is conformity. Don't rock the boat and I'll be content to get the one thing out of you that I can hope for - just follow the rules." For some, this is perfectly appropriate. Why not clearly define the expectation - just follow the rules - and allow people to be stellar rule keepers? Praise and reward them for their proficiency at rule keeping, but recognize that we aren't all rule keepers. We can't all live by the same standard of expectations. There are those who need the freedom to run, which means breaking the rules - often. You'll get the most value out of these people because rewards only come at the cost of taking risks.

Some of you are rule keepers. You need to admit it and be content. If you're a rule keeper, be a rock star at keeping the rules, but if you're not, break them. Break them early and often, and break them especially if they are arbitrary conventions that diminish the value you could be producing. Next week, park in the CEO's spot. Just be sure you've done something stellar to justify it. I doubt he or she will care where you park if you're consistently outperforming expectations, and if they do you might want to look for a new job anyway.

Theodicy

The term "theodicy" was coined by Gottfried Leibniz around 1710 to describe a system that tries to explain and/or vindicate God's goodness in allowing the existence of natural evil.

Yesterday, my friend Bill sent me the link to this story, which appeared in the online edition of Wednesday's Wall Street Journal. I highly respect Bill and his opinions on this issue. He can truly be called an expert in this field.

Given the earthquakes in Haiti and Chile, recent mud slides in Brazil, and a whole host of other natural disasters that seem to be happening all around us, this article is certainly timely if nothing else.

I was actually in Haiti last month, and saw first hand the effects produced by the quake. When peoples lives are literally shaken, they start asking a lot of serious questions about God and his goodness. I saw several instances where the disaster actually became a mechanism for driving people toward faith almost unabated by rational objection. I guess when everything that once made sense no longer does, objections that were once considered rational also fall away.

I'll leave you to draw your own conclusions.

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052702304017404575165724219623474.html

One in Ten Thousand

On Fridays, I plan to highlight a particular virtue. Enjoy this first Friday.

"To be honest, as this world goes, is to be one man picked out of ten thousand." - Shakespeare: Hamlet

Who would you classify as honest? Who is the most honest person you know? Have you considered what honesty really is?

Webster defines honesty as "refraining from lying, cheating, stealing; being truthful, trustworthy, or upright; sincerity; fairness; straightforwardness."

Did you read that definition? I don't think I know anyone who is honest, myself included. I know people who strive for honesty (I would include myself in that camp too), but I don't know anyone who is truly honest, or do I?

Honesty is an amorphous term. It can be narrowly or broadly defined, and an individual's honesty can easily be compared to those who are less honest as a way of self-justification.

But is there really an honesty spectrum? Can you be 80% honest and 20% a liar and still call yourself honest? (That would seem dishonest to me.) What if you're 51% honest and 49% not? What about 99% honest and 1% not? What if you only tell the truth when questioned, but don't voluntarily disclose information until you're pressed for it? Do you have to commit the act of dishonesty or can you be dishonest by omission?

I think we have to admit that honesty is an all or nothing proposition, otherwise it's not honesty. It might be something else, but it's not honesty. This makes us uncomfortable. We desire to be honest, but we recognize that we fall short of the mark - often. Many days I'm full of...well, let's just say I'm full of myself. We all are, which is why I don't know anyone who is completely and totally honest in an all or nothing kind of way.

BUT...

I do know a lot of people that I trust, which is weird given that I don't know anyone who is honest. Have you thought about that? How do I trust individuals, when I fully recognize that we're all dishonest? I think I know the answer. I trust people's intentions, even if they fail in their actions. That allows me to see the best in full blown liars if I believe them to be striving for honesty.

Here's what I propose: Let's all strive to be a bit more honest today, while grading others not on their achievement of honesty, but on their attempt. I think we'll all be a bit more honest and will see a lot more honesty in others around us.

Today you can be Hamlet's one in ten thousand. So can I, and we can choose to see the best in those around us.

Running Downhill

I'm a runner. I like to run. Let me clarify that. I like the benefits of running that I get to enjoy after the fact; I hate running when I'm in the middle of a run.

I ran yesterday, and realized that I tend to coast on the downhills. I work on the uphills, pretty hard, and I'm steady to aggressive on flat ground, but after the hard work of conquering a hill I coast on the way down.

As I thought about this deficit in my running discipline, I was reminded of the women's triathlon during the 2008 Summer Olympics in Beijing. Australian, Emma Snowsill won the event, but she didn't just win it, she came in a full minute and seven seconds ahead of second place. To give you a little perspective, just 21 seconds separated second and third place, and there were five more athletes within a minute, seven seconds of the second place finisher.

A minute and seven seconds? Really? How is that even possible? I'll tell you how...Emma sprinted the downhills! While everyone else was pulling up for a rest, taking a break after the hard work of running up the hills, Snowsill continued to sprint, continued to work, continued to sweat.
Meanwhile, I'm coasting on the downhills.

Recognizing this, I immediately felt like I was the worst runner in the world for my coasting and lack of discipline, then I snapped out of it and began to realize the significance. What would life look like if I sprinted the downhills? What does coming in a full minute and seven seconds ahead of the pack look like? How much more of an impact would I have if I sprinted the downhills?

I'm not advocating burnout or a complete rejection of appropriately healthy rest, but I realized that a lot of my coasting wasn't out of a need for healthy rest. It was just laziness. When I run tomorrow I have a feeling that I'm going to go harder and faster, especially on the downhills.

Are you sprinting the downhills?

Seeing Things

The concept of vision is an interesting one. We hear people talk about strategic vision, and having a vision for how products or services should be developed and implemented. Optometrists check your vision. But what exactly is vision?

Very simply it's the ability to see things, either physically or figuratively. You would think then that we all have some type of vision. Unfortunately, that's not the case. All eyes are not created equal. Even among people with vision, there are varying degrees. Some have great vision, some have vision, but it's lack-luster.

What's really interesting is that we all have the capacity for vision hard wired into our DNA - we are capable of seeing, capable of thinking, capable of projecting those thoughts forward in time. So why do so few of us actually embrace this concept of having a vision, much less put that vision to use in life?

I see things every day that cause me to stop and ponder, think, and project. I've decided to share that vision with you, the reader. I certainly haven't cornered the market where vision is concerned, but I do see things, lots of things, and am compelled to help others see things as well. Reignite your vision, be stimulated, see things today, have a vision.

Tech

Let me start this post by saying that I hate technology, not all technology, just most of it, and not for the reasons you might expect. I recognize that it's a bit ironic for a guy who started a blog just three days ago to be railing against technology so soon afterward. I also recognize that it might seem counter intuitive for me to blast the very technology that I benefit from using. None of that is lost on me. All the same, I still hate technology.

Here's why: tech proponents always try to sell me on the convenience of advancements like text messaging and Facebook. They say, "It's fast, easy, convenient, and allows me to get so much more done in my day." I seriously doubt that, but even if true this convenience comes at what cost?

In reality, many recent technological advancements have come at a great cost. Technology is pervasive - it's everywhere and in everything, but it's also invasive - it slowly creeps into our lives stealing precious margin away from us. Are my tech proponents really more productive as the result of the technology they use? A better question might be, "How valuable is what you produce?"

That's the basic problem - convenience versus value. There are a lot of things in my life that are convenient, but totally without value - pre-ground coffee beans for example. Fresh whole beans provide for a much more valuable coffee drinking experience, but grinding my own beans at 6 AM isn't really a task I cherish and look forward to each and every morning. It's an inconvenience, but generates a much more valuable experience. My coffee tastes richer and fresher than the pre-ground swill some in my circle have become conditioned to.

So, consider the value that you're getting from your technology. Is it eating up precious time and margin in your life, and if so you'd better be getting something awesome in return for the time, effort, and energy that you're spending on tech. If you're not getting something awesome in return (i.e. deeper relationships, richer communication, greater intimacy with loved ones) then you might want to consider what your time is really worth.

What would you say is more valuable:

• One more email in your inbox or a hand written letter from a loved one?
• A text message or a phone call from a friend?
• Another message on your Facebook wall or a conversation with your neighbor?

How much is technology encroaching on your life, and how much value is it adding? In other words, is it worth it? If it is, you're probably the exception, not the rule.

Why?

We've all heard parents having the "why" conversation with their children. It goes something like this:

"Don't put that french fry in your ear son."
"Why daddy?"
"Because we eat french fries son, and you eat with your mouth, not your ear."
"Why do I eat with my mouth and not my ear daddy?"
"Because your mouth is the door to your belly son, and that's where your body turns food into fuel."
"What is fuel daddy, and why does my body need it?"

The conversation always seems to devolve as the exchange continues, but the question raised is an important one: Why?

Early on, I want to make sure that you're getting what you pay for. Make no mistake about it, you might not be handing over cash in exchange for the privilege of reading these posts, but you're certainly sacrificing your time and giving away a part of your lives in order to gain something of value from what you experience here. I want to make sure you know why I'm doing this, and what you can expect in return for your time.

My sole purpose here is to share personal observations and reflections on life in the hope that you'll find something of value or significance. If history is any indicator, you'll find something worthwhile here. When you do, share it with someone else that might benefit.

Expect brevity, simplicity, depth, and significance. Don't sacrifice your time unless your getting something of value in return. It's a fair deal for us both.

A New Thing

I'm not delusional. I recognize that there will likely be only a handful of people who read this first post - today, or ever. That's OK. Often times there are only a handful of people around to witness the beginning of a new thing, and today I'm beginning a new thing.

There can be no better day than Easter Sunday for new beginnings. Christians around the world today will celebrate Jesus' resurrection from the dead (certainly a new beginning). Shortly thereafter, His followers would begin the spread of Christianity throughout the world (also something new). It's of special significance then that today would be the day that I begin to share my observations and thoughts about life with others of you who might feel their impact in significant ways. One more follower, adding one more voice. It's my hope that you'll find this voice a fresh and unique one with something of value to convey.

Today is a new beginning. Happy Easter.